


Short Piles of Fluff and Whatever

by ChibiKittens



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Bittybones, Angst, BittyBones, Cherry BItty - Freeform, Dadster Bitty, Edgy, Flashback, Fluff, Gaster bitty, Lil Bro - Freeform, One Shot Collection, One-Shots, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, PTSD, Ratings may change, Reader becomes a Bitty, Real chance of angst in other chapters, Sansy, Scars, Service Animals/Bitties, Tags May Change, Totally not procrastinating on other work hahahaha, You end up with two of the same bitty, Zero G Bitty, animal/bitty fighting rinks, baby blue - Freeform, body swapping, cherries, grillbitty, it's there now :3, maximum fluff, mentions of rape/non-con, mild swearing, oh btw, rescue bitties, super fluff, title may change, whoops
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-05-30
Updated: 2017-11-19
Packaged: 2018-11-07 01:46:18
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 21,782
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11048724
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ChibiKittens/pseuds/ChibiKittens
Summary: One-shots featuring Reader interacting with Bittybones. Join me in this fluff-fest...or angst-fest, whatever happens ya'know?





	1. Sleepy Times Ahead

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guys. I decided to start a collection of Bittybone oneshots, and I'm really glad to have you reading these, 'cause they really fun to make ;3; I hope you guys like this first one, be prepared for lots of fluff haha ^u^
> 
> Anyways, on to the requests. I'm not really strict on the rules here, just make sure they're left in the first chapter so I can find them easily and you're good to go! Oh, one more thing tho, I'm not super sure if I'll be accepting anything with smut in it. I miiiight, but it's a stretch. I'll look at those requests too though, just in case I feel confident enough to try it, but just keep in mind that I may not be writing those ones. And, uhh, the more detail the better! I wanna make sure I don't mess up your prompts. Any really obscure AUs you want included with these oneshots should also come with a reference or something if you have it, if not than just describe it. Uhh...I think that's it lol. Go wild.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, I'm no longer accepting prompts at the moment. This may change in the future, also there's some more info at the bottom of chapter 7

It was 6:30 in the morning.

It was 6:30 in the morning, and you were (unfortunately) awake.

It was 6:30 in the morning, and you were (unfortunately) awake and sitting in the passenger seat of a car while your enthused friend drove. Quickly, might you add.

Why?

Well, the reason for this crime against sleep was because your bestie here was so excited to get her new pet thing that she absolutely had to wake you up at the ass-crack of dawn just to drag you with her. You were rightly annoyed about this. Surely it could've waited, right? Who got up this early to go pet shopping?! Though, considering how cute the little things were, you gueeeess it made sense. Kinda. And it would be sad to go alone to pick up a new pet. You glanced over at Elaine and considered not being too mad at her, especially when you saw how happy she looked at the prospect of getting a cute little Bitty. Hah. How did someone have so much energy anyways, especially so early in the day?

Wait, where were you again? You slowly blinked your half-closed eyes and looked around. Oh right, the car. Though it wasn't moving anymore, and from outside the window you blearily spotted the humble building cutely named 'Bitty Buddies!'. D'aww, it even had a little swirly heart next to it and everything. How adorable.

"Hurry up _ _ _ _ _, all those little cuties are inside and I just can't wait! Oh my gosh I wonder which one will be perfect for me, they're just all so cool and I wonder if-!"

She went on and on about all the different sorts of Bittybones that this store held. Her energy never seemed to wear thin and after a while your tired brain started skipping over some of her words. Fortunately, she either didn't notice or didn't mind as she practically carried you into the shop with her. Just like the little bitties that the place housed, the small store was rather cute. Asides from a clean whiteness, the building was also colored in soft pastels that reminded you of cotton candy, and all the merchandise had equally cute tags that had little cartoon bitties on them. Nearly one half of the store seemed completely dedicated to the actual bitties, however, and with renewed vigor Elaine pulled you up and over the glass wall that fenced them inside.

"Oh my gosh _ _ _ _ _ would you look at all the little cuties? So adorable!" she gave a little gasp when some of them grew curious and started to come over, which made you giggle.

"Ah...are you okay?" you asked. She had her hands held up to her mouth and looked near tears.

"Yes!" she squeaked. "Yeah, definitely! I just need to calm down a bit. Ha, a bit, get it? Haha!"

You chuckled and patted her arm. "Haha, yep. Just try not to trample the little guys yeah? Probably wouldn't make the best first impression."

Elaine nodded with new found seriousness, but still had that twinkle in her eyes as she bent down to be closer to the Bitties.

"Hey there guys, it's so nice to met you, I'm Elaine!" she spoke exuberantly. Already the crowd around her feet was shuffling around, some leaving while others stayed or joined in with hopeful expressions on their faces. You noted the small energetic blue ones and taller, excited red scarved ones seemed the most interested particularly. You may not have been really familiar with Bitties, but already you could see why these two would be drawn to your friend.

It also made you worried that instead of one crazy lunatic waking you up at at ungodly hours, there'd now be two. The thought made you wince.

 _Well, at least she's happy,_ you thought, and smiled as a few of the little guys tried climbing up and onto Elaine. A few even seemed to be challenging the others on their climbing skills. Now that you were paying more attention, however, you noticed that some of the other Bitties were interested in you as well.

 _Aw geez, better not lead them on or anything._ Elaine was the one here to adopt, after all, not you. Taking a step back from the skeletons, you took out your phone and earbuds and proceeded to the nearest wall to take a rest while Elaine did her thing. Since it was too early in the morning for anything even remotely loud or heavy, you opted to put on some soft music and let it lull you into a relaxed state. Maybe a bit too relaxed, though, because the next thing you knew you were sitting against the wall as your eyelids grew heavier and heavier. A yawn slipped past your lips, and within moments your eyes slid shut as you fell asleep.

...

......

Wh..what was that? Giggling?

"Hahaha, oh my gooosh, so cute!"

_Click! Click!_

Groaning, you opened your eyes. Seemed like your earbuds had fallen out, and- ew, gross, eye buggers. You moved to rub the sleep from your eyes but stopped when you felt something weigh your arm down. Multiple weights, actually. What was happening?

"Don't move! You'll wake them up and then I can't take all these adorable pictures!"

Elaine's words were followed by more clicking. It took a moment for your sleep-hazy brain to catch onto what she said, but when it did you forced your eyes open to see what she meant. Doing just that, you looked-

"Hmpphawhat?"

There was something on your face, and as soon as you moved it slid down and plopped into your lap with- with a grunt? Oh. OH. Well then.

That was a Bitty.

And so was that.

Hmm, yep. That one too.

Seems like you woke up covered in Softbones. And by covered, _you meant it._ Tons of fluffy little skeletons lay on your belly and lap, while others dozed off on your legs and shoulders. A few had even managed to seek out other sleeping spots on you when those options ran out, as evident by the softbones snoozing away in the bend of your elbow and the one who had originally taken up sleeping on your face. You blinked sleepily at this, not truly processing it yet trying not to move all the same. This...this was cute, you had to admit. If you were anymore awake you were sure your heart would've have melted at this.

"Oh honey, you're so lucky!" Elaine cooed joyously. "But not as lucky as me. Just look at my new friend!"

She held out her palm, and sitting happily within it sat a Baby Blue. Ah, looks like you guessed right then.

"HELLO HUMAN FRIEND OF MAMA! I-"

You cringed at his loud voice, and before you knew what you were doing you politely (as possible) shushed him while curling up deeper under your pile of Bitties. At your shifting, some of the Bitties hummed happily and snugged further into you as well.

"Come on Bluebs," Elaine whispered. "Let's let them be cute awhile longer."

They both left in a cloud of giggles, leaving you to tiredly enjoy the situation you had awoken into. But, alas, all good things come to an end. And that applied to you as well, as when a store employee came over and started feeding the little guys, all the softbones suddenly woke up and scrambled away in a hungry daze.

Well.

All but one.

You looked down at him, and he up at you. Vaguely you recognized him as the one who fell off your face, and a sleepy smile rose on your face at the silly memory. Seeing you smile made him grin in turn before he burrowed deeper into your soft clothes.

"Oh, I'm sorry, is this little one bothering you? I'll take him and bring him to the others so he can eat."

A voice- the employee- made you glance up as he began to reach down. At the same time, you pushed his hand away and the softy laying on you tried rolling away from him.

"...Naw," you yawned. "Let him be."

"Oh...okay." he straightened back up. Curiosity lit his gaze as he asked, "Does that mean that you're interested in adopting then?"

You didn't need to look down, but you did anyways, fully knowing that you'd be meeting the gaze of the softy. Neither of you needed to say anything to understand the other.

"Yeah, I am."


	2. Not What You Wanted for Breakfast

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A requested Reader and Gaster Bitty one-shot, featuring the Zero G gaster bitty. (Info on Zero Gs can be found in the link below)  
> https://bittybones-au.tumblr.com/post/158740978979/icetigerkitten-ive-been-wanting-to-do-this-for

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright, I'm done with school, my other fic was updated- time to work on some fluffy one-shots!!! This chapter was written for this request, 
> 
> "Um...I was wondering if I could request a one shot with a  
> Reader + Spoopster (Aka: A Gaster Bitty)  
> Or  
> Body swap! Fluffy! One shot with a  
> Reader+ Zero G (Aka: Another Gaster Bitty)"
> 
> I went with the second option, I hope you like it! :3

The day started like any other. The sun seeped in through the soft curtains, birds chirped their sweet songs, and you woke up with a ruffled head of hair and an empty stomach hungering for breakfast.

Of course, even with such a picture-perfect start to your day, you should have been suspicious. 'Suspicious of what?', you hear some imaginary voice ask. Well, suspicious of the Bitty that shared the house with you.

Not many other Bitty caretaker's can quite come to understand the day to day life you have with your little pal. Sure, those with Edgys and Boss' can expect a very busy day as well, but nothing quite like what you've grown used to over the year of living with your Gaster type Bitty; A Zero G.

So when you prepped breakfast for the two of you, him watching and behaving pleasantly as you flipped the eggs in the hot pan, you probably should have wondered why he was acting like this. You also probably should have been keeping a stern watch over the eggs that he seemed rather fixated on, because the next thing you knew, you were digging into them eagerly before you started to feel strange.

Five seconds later, and you both were passed out on the table.

...

"Ugh..." you groaned into the table, your fuzzy mind bubbling to the surface of your conscience. You ached all over, though, now that were your focused on it, it was less of an ache and more of just...feeling...weird? Something felt off, and with a huff you sat up and looked around blearily.

You gave everything a brief look before falling over with a shriek. Everything was huge!

Stretching out before you was a field of brown wood- the table top. What seemed like a mile long drop finally ended as the floor came into view. The chairs, while remaining somewhat below you, still seemed large as a house, and the entire kitchen as a whole felt like a never ending field of tiles and overwhelmingly large counter tops, appliances, and furniture.

How did this happen?! If this all changed then...did...did you dare to look down at yourself?

You did.

You dared.

You slowly started wailing in a voice that didn't belong to you.

"Oh dear," you- no, not you. Your voice spoke up suddenly from in front of the table. "there is no need for that. You're fine, so please stop that ghastly shrieking."

Your wail trailed off into a whimper as you looked up into...you. Then, you looked down at your hands- or rather his hands. And his body. Your gaze swapped back to him in further bewilderment.

"What the hell's going on?" you nearly yelled again, too caught up in your dilemma to notice your Bitty- now in your body- move to pick you up until he had you sitting in his palm. He began to walk out into the hallway.

"Don't fret dearie, I merely used a magic potion to swap our minds, and in turn swap our forms. It's not permanent so there's nothing to worry about. I was simply curious to see how powerful my summons could be if a Human soul were powering them, and wish to test it out."

"N-Nothing to- Zero! We...we..." you're rant turned into a soft murmur when he began expertly petting your head. A calmness washed over you against your will. "How...how are you doing that?" you started purring. Or maybe your bones were just rattling happily, it all sounded the same.

"Please dear, give me some credit," he scoffed. "I know many things, so surely it would make sense that I would know my own body well enough to cause such a reaction, yes?"

"...No, just...no." you gawked and pushed his thumb (your thumb? Geez...) away. "Never say that again." you shuddered.

"Hwehehe." he laughed, a tilted smile playing on his lips. "Come now, dearie, let's see how the blasters fare with their new fuel source."

He walked over to the garage door and opened it. You wondered dreadfully what weird and potentially twisted experiment Zero had in mind. He flicked the light on and bathed the area in a fierce yellow light. Propped in the center of the chilly room was a small station- a table set up with wooden targets and safety glass. Zero moved in and placed you down on the table.

"Wh..where...how did you get all this set up?" you questioned.

"I have my ways." he answered vaguely. His smile turned eager as he placed the first target down at the end of the table.

"You know I've never used magic before, right?" you said, arching a brow at him.

"Not to worry dear, it's quite easy. Just call out the magic from your soul and form it into the shape of the blasters you have, ah, seen before."

"Phht, 'seen before', sure, we'll go with that." you quipped sarcastically, remembering far too well all the times he summoned the little skulls for other hazardous 'experiments'.

"Hwehehehe." he laughed and waved a hand at you to begin.

You sighed heavily. "Alright alright, I'll do this thing of yours so long as it doesn't last too long." you conceded and turned towards the target.

"Ah, wait," you looked around, suddenly aware of all the little floating hands that followed you around. "which one of these do I use?"

He peered down at you and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Any of them, dearie."

Focusing on one, it wavered unsteadily through the air, flickered once with magic, then tilted off course and smacked you in the face. "Ow..."

"Alright, alright, enough of that now." Zero sighed and waved the floating hands to the side. "No need to complicate things dear, just use one attached to you and summon a blaster."

"Geez, okay." you murmured and rubbed your face. "Okay, lemme see if I can..."

Raising a hand, you focused on your soul. To your surprise you easily felt it thrumming underneath your sternum, practically bristling with colorful energy, and with a flick of the wrist you sensed the magic burst out from your Soul and zip along your arm. A faint pins-and-needles sensation arose in your fingertips as the air simmered. Within seconds, a wildly spiked draconic skull formed, all the more fearsome than you normally saw it now that it was as large as you were.

You didn't need anymore instructions now. It came naturally now as you raised a hand and beckoned the creature to your bidding. Opening its large toothy maw, a blinding light swirled in its jaws before firing off and obliterating the wooden target. Splinters were sent flying, and a small burn mark was left behind on the table.

"Splendid, dear, splendid!" Zero praised. He hurriedly scrawled down some notes before moving to set up another target.

The joy of using the blasters was making this whole experiment deal more appealing to you, and you complied and shot off another bright blast at the target without complaint. Zero cooed happily, set up another target, and took more notes when that one was destroyed with ease as well.

"Alright, that was all well and good, but now it's time to see how well you fare against something new." he smirked and moved over to the other end of the table and reached below it. Something clicked, and standing back up, he placed down a...

A rabbit.

A little nose-twitching fluffy bunny.

You don't know what noise you were making right then and there, but it sounded like you were choking on a hiss.

Zero patted the bunny on the head. "Here's the new target, let's see how well the blas- where are you going?"

As he was speaking, you turned heel and began walking away. "Nuh-uh. No way. I'm done, where's the thing that changes us back?" you began climbing down the table as you spoke, feet hitting the ground with a soft clack when you reached the floor.

"Dearie, you can't just leave." he said, absentmindedly picking up the rabbit while he followed after you. "And I'm not telling you until you finish the experiment." he added smugly.

"Ugh, never mind. I know where you keep your freaky nonsense." you taunted, immediately whipping away his smug grin. He paused, before walking after at a brisker pace.

"N...no you don't." he argued, watching with growing urgency as you went into the kitchen, then bee-lined for the space underneath the fridge. "Stop that at once and return to the garage."

He dropped the rabbit and let it spring away as he made a grab at you, which you dodged before leaping under the fridge. Instead of the clutter you expected, it was surprisingly organized and well kept. Amidst the items, you quickly spotted a capped bottle that held a blue liquid.

"Aha!" you yelled victoriously, hauling the bottle up and wrestling off the top. "I found it~!"

Zero's eyes widened when he saw the bottle in your hands.

"No, wait, that's not the right-!"

You blocked out his voice as you tilted the bottle and drank from it. The magic crackled and seeped into your bones, before heading for the center of your being. You felt it encase your Soul like a scratchy blanket, and your vision went black as it was yanked from the bony body sent out for another.

Slowly, you blinked open your eyes.

 _N-No! It was supposed to work!_ you thought with dismay, seeing the kitchen tiles no more than a few inches from your face. Everything was still large. You weren't in your real body.

And yet...you weren't underneath the fridge anymore either. In fact, you could see Zero still in your body, yet the skeletal body was still there too. What happened?

Finally looking down, you saw what happened. The potion hadn't returned you to your body like you had hoped. It switched you out for...

...the rabbit.

"I tried! I tried to tell you, dearie!" Zero hissed, moving to pick you up from the floor. "Now look at what you've done. You're a rabbit! And now, now..." he cast a glance over to his Bitty form, and you followed his gaze and startled at what you saw.

Zero's body was now on all fours, nasal cavity twitching(?), and hopping away with rapid jumps. Very quickly, it vanished around a corner and out of sight.

"Oh no."

_Oh no..._

The two of you leapt to action, trying to catch the runaway Bitty body inhabited by a mind of a rabbit.

It took all day to finally return everyone to their proper bodies.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No bunnies, bitties, or humans were harmed in the writing of this fic. XD


	3. Two Cherries are Better than One

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You are a proud and loving caretaker of a Cherry, but what happens when you take home another one?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heeeey, guess who got super into a prompt and then took forever writing it??  
> *points thumbs at self*  
> This guuuyyyyy!  
> Anyways, here's chapter 3! The prompt for this was provided by Savilla. The prompt was-
> 
> "Like what if you went to adopt, but there were 2 bitties of the same kind/type interested in you, or you already have a bitty, but then find a stray of the same kind/type. Could you even adopt both or would you have to choose? If you bring in a stray would your other bitty try to get along with it, or would it get jealous or anxious at being "replaced"? I don't think I've seen this covered before, so I thought it might be kinda interesting."
> 
> So here it is, yay! As you can guess by the title, I went with Cherries for this one, and man did i have fun with it! It turned out pretty long too, longer than the other two chapters 'cause this prompt was just begging to be fully explored, so I hope I did just that, and I hope you like how it turned out ^^

A silver car crept tiredly into the driveway of a neat and tidy looking two-story house. It rumbled softly for a moment, and you felt the small quivers travel through the soles of your feet. After finally coming home after an exhausting work day, you let out a weary sigh and slowly unbuckled yourself and opened the car door. All you wanted was to go home, greet and cuddle up with your beloved Cherry Bitty, and maybe settle down on the couch and watch a cute animated movie with him. A small smile touched your lips at the warming thought. It was always so adorable watching little Ren become so joyous and excited when the characters got their happy endings.

While you would've liked nothing more than to lose yourself in such happy daydreams, you were slowly being roused out of your thoughts by a soft, wobbly noise coming from your left. You narrowed your eyes as the odd sound persisted and allowed your curiosity to take over as you stepped back from your doorway to peer over at your neighbors house. Straining your ears, the noise became clear to you.

It sounded like...crying.

"Um, hello?" you asked sheepishly and took a tentative step into their yard. You looked around, but you couldn't see anyone, yet the sobbing persisted. Not only that, but it got louder as you walked closer to your neighbor's house.

It was only when you neared their porch that you managed to spot the source of the crying.

For a moment you almost believed that it was Ren, but it wasn't. It was another Cherry. He lay curled up on the porch, hiccuping as red tears slipped from his sockets.

"Oh dear, are you okay?" you asked worriedly, crouching down and brought a hand up hesitantly. You weren't sure if he would be fine with being touched by some stranger, so you let it fall back to your side.

At the sound of your soft voice, the Bitty tilted his head and peered up at you with large, wet eyes. He squeaked, startled at how close you were, and nearly toppled over himself in his haste.

"Woah, no need to be scared!" you reassured, hands held up passively. As you looked at him, you spotted small scuff marks on his visible bones, and the concern you felt for him only increased. "I was just worried...are you okay?" you re-asked your question when you saw him calm down just a bit.

He sniffled and turned his head away from you. The Bitty opened his mouth, only to close it again as uncertainty crossed his features.

"Uhh...this is your home right? Why don't we get you back inside, okay?" you asked, trying for a different approach.

"N-NO!" he finally shouted. His eyes locked onto you, wide and fearful and teary. "I-I'm not a-allowed to be inside w-w-when I-I've...w-when I've..." he trailed off and turned his face into the fluff of his hoodie. "...when I've b-been bad and t-t-troubled m-mommy..." he finally finished, his voice a mere whisper.

"When you've been...bad?" you whispered his words, brows furrowed in thought. You, after some deliberation, caved in and let yourself reach out to him and pat his back gently. Thankfully, it seemed to make him a little better. "Oh sweetie, I'm sure you did nothing wrong!" you were quick to reassure. "Just let me take care of it, okay?"

You gave him one last pat before standing back up and walking around to the front door. You barely felt him tug on your pant leg, but other than that he made no move to stop you. You knocked on the door and waited. No one answered. You knocked again, only to get the same result. With a huff, you moved over to the windows and peeked through a sliver of space between two curtains that blocked your view.

"Oh gods." you cursed and immediately recoiled as red stained your cheeks. Oh yeah, the Cherry's caretaker was home alright. As were two other people, all enjoying each other's company on the couch. You really, really didn't need to see that, and thinking that Cherry most likely saw it too pissed you off. And he was kicked out for this? What the hell?!

"A-Are you m-m-mad too? I'm s-sorry!"

The Cherry's sad voice made you look away from the scene, and back to the little Bitty still on the porch. Immediately, you leaned back down and scooped the little ball of fluff up.  
"No, no, not at all!" you, well, lied. You were mad, but not at him. There was no need to worry him other your anger towards his caretaker though. "I'm just...concerned. It's not safe for you to stay outside on your own, so would you like to come home with me instead?"

"I-I dunno...what if s-she comes out a-a-and gets m-mad when I'm n-not here?" he choked, a new wave of tears threatening to spill over his cheekbones.

Oh dear, you couldn't have that, now could you? Moving him into one hand, you rummaged through your pockets and retrieved a crumbled post-it note, and a pen. You quickly scrawled a note out for the Cherry's caretaker and stuck it on the door.

"There we go," you smiled down at the Bitty, a warm glint in your eyes. "No harm no foul, right?"

He looked up at you, and his tears seemed to lessen. The edges of his wobbly frown twitched upwards fractionally. "O...okay." he murmured, a lighter tone in his voice than before.

"Okay." you confirmed happily, and began carrying him back to your house. You remembered the scuff marks you saw, however, and returned your gaze to the Bitty. "Let's get you cleaned up then."

He hummed in response while you looked him over with a critical eye. Honestly, a quick bath may not be the only thing this little skeleton needed. You also thought back to his caretaker. Even though you hardly knew her, you already gathered that she was probably a horrible caretaker. Who knew what else this Bitty needed? You ran through the essentials of any living creature; food, water, shelter- in the span of a few minutes it already seemed like she was incapable of providing such things to her Bitty. Looks like you might have your work cut out for you.

With a sigh, you opened the door to your home, and were immediately greeted with the shrill cries of your overly worried Cherry. Ahh, to be home again.

"W-Where were you? You came home l-late, did something h-happen?!"

You smiled in amused exasperation. He said this every time you came home even remotely late, which, to him, was near immediately after the planned time you would tell him you would come home at. When you leaned down and offered your free hand to him, Ren didn't spare any time leaping in and hugging tightly onto your fingers.

"No sweetiepie, nothing bad happened," you cooed as you brought the two inside and towards the living room. "but something did happen. Ren, we have guest. He's a bitty from next door and he'll be spending today with us, okay?"

At your mention of him, the Cherry shrunk away sheepishly, even more so when he spotted Ren moving over to see him better. Ren gave him a shy smile and wave, which he tried to mimic, albiet awkwardly. Seeing that Ren seemed to be doing okay with the newcomer, you placed him down alongside the new Cherry when you moved over to the couch.

"I need to go grab some things, will you be fine staying here with Ren for a moment?" you asked, and after receiving a nod, went off to collect some stuff to treat his scratches. While you were gone, the two Cherries exchanged nervous glances.

"Hello...uh..." Ren spoke up softly, eyes briefly meeting the other's before he looked away. "M-My name's Ren..."

The new Cherry startled when he found Ren's expectant gaze on him, and began sweating as he stumbled to follow up in the sudden conversation. "U-Um, uhh...hi, er...Barry. I-I mean, t-that's m-me, uhh, I'm B-Barry...uh, hi..."

Barry leaned against the couch until he slid down and was hugging his knees to his chest. His face glowed red in his embarrassment, and that's exactly how you found him as when you returned.

"Oh, are you okay?" you asked, worry laced through your voice. You laid down the materials and knelled down to his level, lips pouted as you peered carefully at him.

"O-Oh! Uhh, u-umm...hmhmm."

You frowned as he curled up tighter against the cushions, but shrugged it off as you brought forth the meticulously cut-up, now bitty sized band aids, as well as some disinfectant wipes.

"Alright honey," you began, and held up the wipes. "We gotta get you cleaned up, though it may sting a little. Do you think you could be tough for me for a second while I do this?"

He gave a scared look at the wipes, but then Ren scooted over and hesitantly placed a hand on his shoulder. "It's not as b-bad as it sounds...you got this Barry!"

Oh god, those two were adorable together! It was incredibly difficult to hold back your joyous squeals, especially when Ren's reassurance worked and Barry gave a genuine smile and started to relax.

"O-Okay." he acquiesced. With a soft smile, you began dabbing the disinfectant onto the scuffs and scratches that marked his bones. Barry hissed at the little jolts of pain, flinching each time you brought forth the wipe. After that, you covered it up with the small bandages, leaving behind a kiss for each one you placed down.

"Feel better?" you asked, but were met with a stuttering Barry, left stunned at your cute display. You giggled and stood up, eyes warm as you looked down at the two Bitties.  
"Well, I don't know about you two, but I'm thinking that dinner sounds really nice about now, right?"

Two pairs of eager eyes told you that, yes, they too thought dinner was a nice idea right now, and you quickly went off to prepare it.

\- - - - -

Later, as the night set in, you prepped Barry up in the living room before you brought Ren back with you into your bedroom. As you slipped into your pajamas, you gazed over at Ren. As time had gone on and as dinner was eaten, he seemed to become less and less like himself, almost like he had slowly deflated like a balloon. It was worrying. At first he seemed so welcome of Barry when you brought him in, but then he quieted and began shifting glances between you and him, and his sockets would crinkle ever so slightly.

Because of this, you felt the need to bring it up...but he beat you to it.

He called your name nervously, and you gave him your most sympathetic expression, urging him on.

"S-So, uhh...now that Barry's here, does...d-does that m-mean t-that..." he broke off an swallowed down a sudden sob. He began to fidget with his hands, his head turned away from you. "D-Does t-that mean that h-he's r-r-re..r-repl..p-plac-cing m-me?" he cried, and when he turned his head back up to you, you were horrified to find big globs of tears welling up and falling from his sockets.

"Oh, sweetie! No no no, he's not honey!" you yelped, rushing in and scooping him up into your arms. He pressed his wet face into your shirt, and his small body shook terribly in your palms. "You will **never** be replaced, got it honey? Never."

He nodded, too choked up to speak, and you moved to calm him to running a finger gently along his back. He slowed down from sobbing to sniffling, and turning his head free from your shirt, he asked, "Do...do you p-promise?"

You nearly began crying yourself, mentally kicking yourself for not briefing Ren sooner when you brought Barry into your home. Of course this would happen, you should have known! He began trembling again, and you realized you had yet to reply.

"Oh of course, honey! Of course I promise, and I will always promise that. Always."

Ren sniffled and burrowed into your chest. You held him to yourself tightly as you laid down for sleep, and neither of you released the other for the whole night.

\- - - - -

It was the next day. The sunlight was warm and the grass was green, yet now, as you stood in front of the door of your neighbor's house, you could only feel the sting that was left with you after having talked with Barry before coming here.

When you told him that you were going to talk with his neighbor for the sake of his return, he was so happy. Admittedly, he confused when you said you would go alone, but happy none the less. The sting came from the feeling that made you leave him there. You had a bad, gut-turning feeling that this talk wouldn't go peachy-keen, and in case you were right, didn't want him to be there to see it.

Yet...maybe you were wrong, so you raised a hand and politely knocked on the door.

You waited...and waited...Just as you were about to knock again, the door creaked open, and a ruffled, tired head peered back out at you.  
"What do you want?" she rasped, mouth pressed in a thin frown.

"Oh, uh, well I wanted to talk to you about, uh, Barry." you clarified. You watched as she tilted her head in question, and it took a moment for you to realize why. Your brow twitched angrily when you drawled, "Your _Bitty_."

"Ah, him. What about it?" she asked, now leaning against the door frame as she looked you over.

At this moment, you were pressed to just drop it and walk away, but you decided to keep going regardless, if only to get confirmation. "I found him outside here yesterday, rather banged up, so I took him to my home and he's still there at the moment. I was wondering if you got my note the other day about it?"

She nodded...and that was it. You sighed wearily and trudged onward.

"Just...look," you pinched the bridge of your nose. "Do you want him back or not?"

She scoffed out a dry laugh and perked a brow. "Well, if you're offering to take care of it, then eh. Whatever."

You nearly growled, and felt a primal urge well up to spit her words back in her face and demand to know how she could be so apathetic towards her own Cherry, but choked it down and forced a twisted smile onto your face instead.

"Fine by me..." you hissed, eyes narrowed at her, before you began stomping away. She didn't call you back, didn't do anything that suggested that she came to her senses and showed that she did want her Bitty back. When you glanced back over your shoulder, all you saw was a shut door.

"Fucken hell...bitch."

\- - - - -

"W-W-What do y-you mean, I-I'm not g-g-going home?"

You sighed from your spot on the couch while raking a hand through your hair. Hearing his broken voice was enough to make your eyes sting, but you held yourself together for Barry's sake. Gods knew he would need a composed figure to rely on after hearing this news.

"The neighbor, your caretaker..." you paused, thinking over your words carefully. "...said it would be for the best if you stayed here instead."

"B-But why?! Does s-she hate me? A-Am I b-b-broken?" he whimpered, lower lip wobbly and voice choked with tears.

Fuck. Fuckity fuck fuck fuck, this was exactly what you didn't want to happen. You were beginning to find it very hard to keep the burn from your eyes as you whisked the little Cherry up into a warm embrace.

"Oh honey, no. She doesn't hate you, she just...she's not fit to take care of a Bitty, you know? It's not your fault sweetie."

He sniffled and whined as he clutched tightly to your shirt. Man, these Cherries would be the emotional death of you. You wished there was something more you could do...  
Out in the hallway, you heard Ren sleepy call your name. He came in and froze when he saw you and Barry together on the couch.

"B-Barry? Is everything okay?" he asked and hesitantly moved up to the couch. From your arms, you felt Barry shy away from Ren like a frightened kitten would.

"Oh Ren, he's not feeling good right now." you explained sadly, shifting around as the Cherry in your arms moved around.

"O-Oh! I'm s-sorry Barry!" he squeaked and immediately began climbing up you to give Barry a hug of his own. The shy little guy yelped, too startled to deny all the affection he was receiving.

As you looked down lovingly at the two Bitties in your arms, you couldn't help but note how similar they looked. In fact, with Ren wearing his classic jacket and Barry seemingly having only his store-given jacket to wear, you would swear that they were twins.

This gave you an idea.

"Hey," you started, gaining the attention of your two boys. "how about we go shopping?"

The two Cherry's exchanged a glance as your smile brightened. They agreed, and you all went out and quickly turned your day around to being a great one.

\- - - - -

You walked the aisles with a pleased look, watching on warmly as the Ren guided Barry around. Currently, they were traveling a row of shelves reserved specially for Bitty sized clothing, and Ren was having a blast showing his new friend all his favorite brands.

However, as Ren was gazing longingly at the newest model of fluffy red jackets, Barry seemed to be drawn to something else. Curious, you walked closer.

"Hmm, black huh?" you asked, peering closely at the section he stopped at. Actually, with closer inspection, they might have been a dark grey. You chuckled as he jumped at the sound of your voice, before relaxing and turning back to the clothing.

"Y-Yeah. U-U-Uh..."

Oh, you knew that sound.

"Is there something you want? Don't be shy, we did come here to get new clothes after all." you smiled.

"A-Ah, well," he fidgeted. Then, he slowly shuffled over before carefully picking up a grey striped scarf. "T-This...is r-really soft..."

A scarf, huh? You weren't expecting that. You hummed and brushed it with the tip of you finger, feeling that it indeed was soft.

"Okay!" you chirped, and gently took it and placed it in your basket. "Is there anything else?"

He gave you a bewildered look as you placed the scarf in, eyelights shimmering as looked up at you. You barely caught the slight grin before he went back to the clothes.

"W-Well, maybe...t-t-this seems c-cool."

Ren eventually wandered back over and happily helped the two of you as you picked out a ton of new outfits for Barry. By the end of the day, he was smiling brightly, hardly restraining himself from bouncing in place at the thought of trying on the new attire back home.

\- - - - -

Going shopping with the Bitties was one of the best ideas you've had. It was only the beginning of a lot of great times to come, and ever since then Barry seemed to feel more at home; more relaxed and open. That, and now you could actually tell them apart by appearance now.

Well, except... you noticed one day, a couple weeks later, that you didn't even need the new variations in their clothing to tell who was who. Barry still had his original jacket after all, the same one that every Cherry has, and it was on a day where both Ren and Barry were wearing these jackets that you noted that you could still, somehow, tell them apart.  
While they both seemed like the other's doppelganger, you began seeing these tiny, minute differences between them.

For example, Ren was a tad taller and rounder than Barry. His eyesockets were more ovular as well, as opposed to Barry's large, circular ones. His eyelights had a faint pinkish tint to them, just around the edges, and sometimes the coloration would become more apparent when he was very happy.

In contrast, Barry was slightly shorter, and seemed a bit thinner than Ren, or any other Sans type Bitty as well. His bones seemed a deeper ivory than Ren's, and in his own eyelights swam a faint, fruity orange. There was much more, like the small nicks and everlasting scratches on Barry's bones, or the cute way that Ren swung his legs out a bit when he walked, and it amazed you that you hadn't seem any of it before.

You grinned to yourself when you remembered that that wasn't the end of it either. Such variations didn't end there.

After all, there was movie night. You decided to leave the decision of what to watch up to your Cherries, confident that they'd easily find something they'd both agree on, yet you were wrong. Very wrong. Ren was obstinate is his choice of a Disney film, whereas Barry had dragged out a live-action comedy with a sheepish, yet determined look on his face. You had laughed at the time, and you all eventually went with Barry's choice seeing as he was the new member of the family.

Though there was one thing you all shared in common.

"Goodnight honeys," you cooed as you laid your two boys down onto a pillow on your bed. You carefully shimmied your way under the covers right after, and giggled as the two climbed onto your chest as soon as you settled. "I love you both!" you leaned down and kissed the tops of their heads.

"I love you too!" Ren exclaimed and snuggled joyously against you.

Barry blushed and hid his face into your pajamas. "U-Uh, love you t-too!"

Your heart swelled with affection for the two little Bitties cuddled against you. One by one, you all fell asleep, happy little smiles on all of you.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The part where Reader starts to see the physical differences between Ren and Barry actually happened with me before. There was a time where my family had two black cats at the same time, and while they seemed like copies of each other at first, over time they it became glaringly obvious who was who, to the point where I thought it was stupid that I hadn't managed to make such observations before. I think there's a term for this actually...but I don't remember it ^^' Ah well.
> 
> If you see any typos, feel free to tell me in the comments so I can fix them ;3;'


	4. Taking it Day by Day

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was prompted by SilverDragonMS,  
> "I thought of a prompt. So, what if there were therapy bitties like there are other therapy animals? Maybe it's about someone adopting one, or like a rougher more dangerous bitty is taking the course to help their human?"  
> I went with the adoption one, I hope you like it! ^^
> 
> Also, in case everyone doesn't check the new tags, there will be PTSD and symptoms of PTSD in this chapter, and specifically a dissociative flashback as well. 
> 
> For anyone interested, these are the websites used referred to when researching PTSD and service animals  
> http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/post-traumatic-stress-disorder/symptoms-causes/dxc-20308550  
> http://www.pawsitivityservicedogs.com/ptsd  
> If you see anything false in this fic, please feel free to point it out so I can fix it! Thanks ^^

A Bitty.

A small creature holding the intelligence of a Human, while also holding the compassion and love that only a loyal pet could have for its caretaker. Because of this unique mixture, Bitties were often seen as more than just a simple companion.

Pets lacked the capabilities for spoken communication, and Humans lacked the innate trust one would need in order to seek comfort and help from them. Bitties, however, could both speak with and establish trust with others, and with these traits they were easily the perfect contender for helping those suffering from mental illnesses.

Lil Bro was one such Bitty. Trained since his early adolescence, he knew the ins and outs of the Human psyche, what to do in certain situations, and how to respond in emergencies that would involve his Human.

A week ago, he was adopted by a Human afflicted with PTSD and given the name Sam.

It was just another day for him when he woke up to the frightened yell of his Human. Sam sat up in his bed, already recognizing what was happening before he turned to see his Human whimpering and twitching in their sleep. As he climbed the bed sheets to reach them, he heard them muttering to a hidden identity to 'put down their knife', and to 'please don't hurt them'. Sympathy for them and anger towards the people who hurt them in the past flickered in his Soul, but he brushed it off and schooled himself into calmness as he patted their face to wake them up.

"hey, wake up." he murmured soothingly as he continued poking and patting them. "you're safe. wake up, it's okay."

He watched as they awoke in a gasp, fingers clawing into the bed sheet and sweat beading on their forehead. Their watery gaze flitted back and forth, but quickly landed on Sam as he crawled closer and took their face into his small hands.

"you're safe...it was just a nightmare."

"A nightmare..." they echoed back as they slowly reached up to cup his back with a hand. Sam let them hold him closer and pet his skull as they woke up fully, watching patiently as they blinked away the lingering terror.

Calm again, Sam crawled back off the bed to give them enough space to get up. They cursed under their breath and massaged their temples before throwing off the blankets and slowly rising to a stand. As they began to shuffle out of the room, Sam softly cleared his throat, eyes shifting to the bottles of medicine resting on their bedside table.

"Oh, right." they murmured, giving Sam a sheepish smile before grabbing the bottles and downing their pills with practiced ease. When they were done, they turned around and plucked him up from the ground, carrying him in their arms as they wandered around the house, going about their routine before they both ended up sprawled on the couch with a bowl of cereal in hand.

When he was done eating, Sam took his bowl back into the kitchen, levitated it into the sink, then turned around to the fridge. He peeled a post-it note off from the white surface and returned with it to the living room, grinning as he popped back up and stuck it to their face. They took one look at it before groaning and slumping back.

"Is it really shopping day...?" they squinted back at the note, as though they could change the words on it if they glared hard enough. It didn't work.

Sam chuckled. "yep, _day_ finitly today."

He got a soft wack on the head for that one. It was worth it though, he thought, seeing the corners of their mouth twitch upwards regardless.

They went to get properly dressed as Sam slipped on his special vest and held onto the end of a long rope, handing the other end to his Human when they came back. He looked at their attire. It was casual, just a white t-shirt and shorts, paired with a simple pair of sandals.

"not gonna go jogging today, huh?" he asked. Sam remembered hearing that they loved to do that before...back when he was in the process of being adopted. He'd only seen them do it once since he got here.

They stayed silent, only offering him a shrug in response. Their eyes remained downcast, sparked with shame, and Sam patted their leg reassuringly.

"hey, that's okay. maybe another day?"

He saw them nod and let out a burdened sigh, and wished that there was something more that he could do for them.

As his Human opened the door, he took the reins and walked out, keeping a firm grip on his end of the rope as he led them confidently outside. To him, the sunlight was bright and warm, lighting on his bones in a soft, welcoming manner that made him relaxed. Letting out a pleased breath, he tilted his head and glanced back.

While many couldn't see it, Sam saw the way that some things truly dragged them down. The way they kept their head down to keep the sizzling heat of the sun away from their eyes, and the way they shied away and flinched when they passed by dark, small areas holed in by cold buildings. He saw the way that everyday things bit and clawed at them, sucking out the life from their eyes rather than aiding them, as it did others. After a moment of this, he returned his saddened gaze ahead and kept walking with them to the nearest store.

When they got there, the loud hustle-and-bustle made them pause. Their shoulders hunched up minutely, bristling slightly when someone rushed by too quickly.

"hey," he looked back and made sure he had their attention before he continued. "did you hear about the cart that lost all its wheels?"

'Uh, no?" they gave him a curious look, and he mentally high-fived himself when he got them to start walking again, the guarded feeling to their posture eased.

"heh, guess you could say it was having a _wheely_ bad day."

A second passed, and then he heard them snort, then giggle. Sam grinned smugly to himself and felt a surge of pride well up in his Soul.

Sam kept this up for the whole shopping trip. Occasionally, he'd see their face scrunch up in worry or fear, as well as a momentary flare of anger when something would trip them up, and within the next second, he's have them laughing at another of his silly jokes. It got to the point where he didn't even need to say anything, and the two went about their trip in comfortable silence as they slowly crossed off each item on their list.

"i hope you can carry all this." Sam said, looking down into their cart of groceries from where he sat, and remembering that they had walked here.

"Phht, I'm tough enough." they boasted, though he saw the way they glanced uncertainly at their stock, then to their arms. He wondered how long it's been since they'd had a serious workout asides from that one jog, and looking up at them he saw that they were thinking the same. Well, at least the cart wasn't overflowing or anything, at least there wouldn't be so many bags that they wouldn't be able to hold them all.

"eh, we'll manage." he mumbled, leaning back and leaving it at that. His Human thought it over for a bit longer, but eventually gave in to his carefree reassurance too, and started to head back towards the registers.

"Hey, maybe when we get back, we can...we can..."

Around Sam, the air crackled with sudden tension and heaviness, bearing on him like the weight of an oncoming storm, and he shifted to look up at his Human. Immediately, he knew what was happening when he saw how wide their eyes were, how stiff their posture was, how tight their mouth was pulled. Following their line of sight, he saw another customer, and the cart they had besides them. None of that mattered, though.

What did matter was the new set of large, glistening kitchen knives laying inside the cart.

Sam bit back on a curse as he teleported out of the cart and onto the chilly tiled floor. The pride he felt earlier that day dwindled when he realized that he let his focus slip. If only he were keeping an eye out, he would have noticed something like a set of knives being carted nearer to his Human, and led them out before they noticed. He continued to chastise himself as he abandoned their cart to lead them off to somewhere secluded, then felt worse that he was wasting more of his focus by hounding himself about all this when he had his Human to worry about. God dammit, he was trained for this! Just...just take a breath, and concentrate on the real problem at hand.

By the time he tugged them over to a restroom, he had cooled his head, feeling rather silly about it now that he thought it over. His left eye lit up momentarily, and the door handle twisted open, allowing them in.

Sam only spared another second to flick on the rather harsh florescent lights before turning back and 'porting up in front of their chest, hooking a foot into the neck hole of their shirt for balance, and reaching up to gingerly touch their face.

"it's okay, it's okay..." he cooed softly, feeling the familiar reassurances slip out from his teeth over and over, soothing as honey and as sweet as sugar. Soon, he felt their hands cup him from behind, and he let their fingers roam over his skull and back, knowing that it would calm them. One of their hands left him to trail just under their shirt, fingertips grazing across the long, slick scar running across their side.

Sam figured that they were coming back when the rapid heartbeat thundering away under his feet began to slow. Peering up, he saw the haze over their eyes start to lift, and he greeted them with a smile when they returned his gaze.

"hey," he whispered softly. "feeling better now?"

"I...I guess." they croaked, rubbing at their now sore throat. They leaned further back against the cool wall behind them, just now realizing that they were sitting, and brought up a hand to dab at their wet cheeks. "Fuck...how long...?"

"uhh," Sam furrowed his brow. "maybe...ten...fifteen minutes maybe?"

They groaned and brought their head back to rest against the wall. Sam waited and let them rest before they began to shift back up.

"I think- I think I'm ready now."

"you sure?"

"Yeah." they decided, and Sam secured his grip on the rope once more before leading them both out of the bathroom, leaving as though nothing had happened in the first place.  
Sam made sure to stay extra vigilant as they went back to their cart (which, miraculously, remained untouched and still held all their groceries.) They silently went about checking out at the cashier, and then hoisting the bags up and making the short trek back home.

Sam wanted them to take a rest as soon as they got back, but they shrugged him off and went about putting the food away instead. Sam joined them and helped out with his magic, at first to keep an eye on them, but after seeing that they had recovered, turned his attention fully on unloading the plastic bags.

"Do you think," their voice rang out from the quiet, and Sam turned to them as he listened. "...do you think I'm weak?"

"what?" he asked, baffled at the question.

"Do you think I'm weak?" they asked again, words soft and low.

He stared at them for a moment, before stating in a sturdy voice that denied all opposition, "no. of course not."

"Really?" they said, smiling slightly, but it wasn't enough for Sam.

"of course." he reiterated. "you're tough as nails, kid. come on, saying with me. you're tough."

They huffed at him good-naturedly and mumbled the words under their breath.

"come on now, louder than that. you're tough."

"I'm...tough." they murmured, trying to stifle a giggle.

"louder. you're tough!" he shouted, teleporting to their shoulder and poking their cheek. They giggled as he kept poking their cheek, then exclaimed-

"I'm tough!"

"hehehe, nothing truer than that." Sam said, and feeling appeased, went back to the floor and helped finish up with the task. He put the last item away into a cabinet and slowly grinned to himself.

"it's true, you know." he paused, and only started again when he knew he had their attention again. "that you're tough. don't know how many Souls could go through something like...well, and still be able to function, still be able to manage themselves day to day like you do."

"But I don't. I couldn't without you, and today at the store-" he heard them start, but he cut them off.

"no, you do. i don't make you do anything, just help you realize you're potential. you're the one who got out of bed this morning, who decided to go outside today, who finished shopping even after such a sucky thing happened, and even finished it up now, after we got back. a lotta the time other people can't even handle doing that without complaint, much less without having to handle dealing with all the shit you hafta deal with, so-"

Sam found himself quickly cut off as he was swung up into a tight embrace, and his words failed him at the genuinely affectionate display.

"Thanks." they spoke with pure gratitude, and Sam's Soul warmed with the love he held for his Human.

"heh, just speaking the truth." he reaffirmed, and felt their arms tighten just so in reply.


	5. Congratulations. Your Life is a Comedy Now

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tuffy prompted-  
> "You think you could do one with the dadster bitty too? Maybe the character has a few bitties and got the dadster to help care for them."
> 
> So this next chapter features the Dadster Bitty, along with a Sansy, Edgy, and Baby Blue.  
> And let me tell you, this turned out to be one of my favorites thus far, so I hope you guys like it as well ^^

How did this happen?

"RENNY! RED WON'T STOP POKING ME!"

"hehehehe."

"AND SANS WON'T STOP TELLING PUNS!"

"heh, whaaat? i wouldn't patella a pun, that's a fibula right there."

"NOOO! STOOOP IT!"

"Boys, please stop antagonizing each other..." you said, sweating under the glares and looks you were getting from the other passerbys. You craned your neck over the crowd, desperately trying to see if the center was nearing. Please...please let it be close...

How did you end up in this situation?

"AH! REEENNY! RED BIT ME!"

"what? no i didn't!"

"now that's a _biting_ remark if i ever did hear one."

"SAAAAANS!"

"Boys," you nearly whimpered, voice laced with exasperation. "please..."

How did you end up with three young Bitties that you could hardly care for and keep a handle on?

All you knew was that one moment, you were Bittyless, and then you suddenly had three of them. You're still suffering from the whiplash of how fast it happened, how you went from no Bitties to three overnight. It was rainy, it was stormy, and you had opened the door to find the three cowering under a half-destroyed cardboard box out on your doorstep, half-drowned in the rain. The Sansy and Baby Blue had looked up at you with pleading eyes, while the Edgy had tried to seem demanding, but his water-logged form and wavering eyelights only served to make him seem desperate.

Needless to say, you took them in.

But now they didn't want to leave. During their stay, you learned about the trio. They were young, no where near adulthood yet, and they had no home to speak of. In turn, they had quickly grown to like you. A lot. And now they wanted to stay. You kinda wanted that too, but...

You didn't know a damn thing about how to care for them.

And that is how you ended up in this situation, with three Bitties perched on your shoulders as they bickered amongst themselves, with you standing in front of the local Bitty adoption center. You could only hope that there was someone who could help you with these three.

"you're sure we're just here for help...right?" Sans asked, hands clenching stubbornly into your hair as you pushed the door open and walked in.

"Uhh," you hummed nervously. "Well, the most important thing here is that you three will be in capable hands...uh, so-"

You yelped when Red cut you off by biting into your ear. "we ain't getting left here just 'cause you think you can't look after us." He fixed you with a stern glare that you withered away from.

"RENNY!" Blue's voice cried out right as he flung himself at your face. "YOU-YOU WOULDN'T LEAVE US HERE! RIGHT?!"

Ouch, right through the heart.

"I-I just..." you said, raising a hand feebly as you tried to convey to them that you really, really didn't know what you were doing when it came to raising Bitties. Right as you did, though, one of the store employees came over.

"Hello," he said. "I overheard and was wondering, are you here to return your Bits?"

"Oh, u-uh," you stuttered, placing Blue back on your shoulder. You could very clearly feel the three gazes locked onto you. "I-I was actually here to see if, uh, if there was any way I could learn more about Bitty care...? Um, you see-" You gestured to the three Bits on your shoulders. "-I found these three outside one day, and, uh, was hoping that someone here could help..."

"Huhhh," he hummed, pausing to think. "Well, Baby Blues and Edgies can be rather much to handle for a newbie-"

"fuck off."

"LANGUAGE RED!" Blue tutted. "AND FOR THE RECORD, BITTY SHOP HUMAN, I AM VERY WELL BEHAVED! UNLIKE RED HERE!"

"hey!"

The employee turned to you halfway through their fight, and you began to sweat under his unimpressed look.

He sighed, and began walking away. You panicked until you see him gesture for you to follow. "I'll see what I can do, then."

"Oh, thank you!" you said gratefully and followed after him. As you trailed behind him, you looked around the store. There were plenty of aisles dedicated to selling products and items that involved Bitties, but that seemed a given for any pet shop. But, oh, some of these things were much different than the things one would buy for a cat or dog, and you smiled giddily seeing some of them. The tiny appliances that looked like miniature versions of things you would see in your own home was very adorable, and you snickered a little, seeing all the individualized clothing set out for specific Bitty types. If you didn't know any better, you would think that you were looking at some sort of Barbie accessories, gone X-treme! The image of Barbie dressed in the Edgies or Bosses clothing threatened to make you burst out laughing, and it was a welcome distraction all the way until you reached the front of the shop, and you had to return to the present moment.

"We have a lot of books and pamphlets that'll tell you all about the different kind of Bitties we have in our shop here," he said, turning and sweeping a hand out at the display. You leaned forward and plucked up the closest pamphlet and read the cover.

'Bitty Heats and how to Help your Companion: A Guide'

You immediately put it back down.

"T-Thanks," you mumbled, face flushed red with embarrassment.

"If you need anything else, just ask."

"Hmhmm," you mumbled and turned back to the books. You cautiously picked up one that looked promising and began to leaf through it.

"uhh, renny?" Sans popped up in front of you, sheepishly scratching the back of his neck.

"Yeah?" you asked, looking up from the book. Sans chuckled quietly.

"uhh...blue got excited ran off when he saw all the other bits here and, uhh...yeah."

You looked to your empty shoulder, then to the giant glass enclosure that kept in all the Bitties.

And that's when the panic set in.

"Blue? Blue!" you called out to him, climbing over the glass wall and scanning through the fuck-ton of tiny creatures. You skidded to a stop and scooped up a Baby Blue as it was passing.

"Blue!" you cried. Then you looked closer. "Oh, n-not Blue! I'm sorry!" You placed the baffled Bitty back down and resumed your search.  
"Blu-ow!"

A small bone thumped against your head.

"over there bonehead! jesus christ..." Red snapped, and you swiveled around, and to your relief, saw Blue talking eagerly with another taller skeleton.

"Oh thank god, there you are," you said, moving over to the two. "Please don't run off like that again, Blue."

"RENNY!" Blue shouted and ran over to tug you over by your pant leg. "YOU HAVE TO MEET MY NEW FRIEND!"

"Uh, hello!" You kneeled down awkwardly in front of the new skeleton.

"Hello," he said, bowing slightly in greeting. You grew flustered, uncertain if you should do the same or not. Thankfully, he seemed not to notice or mind. "I take it that you're the caretaker of the Marvelous Blue?"

Blue's eyes sparkled joyously at that, and you relaxed a bit, giggling. "Yup, that would be me." As an afterthought, you quickly told him your name too.

"Well, it's a pleasure to meet you, but I'm afraid I don't have a name to offer to you as well," he said, frowning slightly. "However, most call my type Dadsters if that helps."  
You smirked and raised a brow questioningly. "A...Dad-ster?"

"Indeed," he said, pushing out his chest proudly. "We're often held in high regards when it comes to the care of younger Bitties, hence, Dadster."

You paused for a moment, letting his words sink in. "You don't say..."

You glanced around at your three Bits, meeting each of their eyes and seeing if they were thinking the same. Blue and Sans returned your gaze with happy expressions, while Red scowled and complained that 'if three were a crowd, then four was a chore.' He didn't count though; he seemed to complain about everything as it was.

Your smile returned tenfold as you turned back to the Dadster. "Well, if that's the case, then I think we could use your help, if you, uh, want to help that is."

You, along with your trio of Bits, spent the next few minutes explaining everything to the Dadster. As you spoke, his eyes lit up with hope.

"Are...per chance, are you asking to adopt me?"

You looked him straight in the eye, and smiled. "Yes."

Needless to say, even though it was awkward going over and saying how you would be adopting a new Bitty even though they knew that you came in for help in the first place, you were reassured when they seemed to agree with your plan anyways. With your new family member, you all returned home and got to work settling in officially.

\- - - - -

"You mean, like, a doll house?" you asked, clicking onto a website advertising a wide variety of large, distinct miniature houses.

"Yes, it is very important for Bitties to have their own space and privacy, you see," the Dadster informed you, and you hummed in acknowledgment.

"Man, I'm so happy you're here, you know? Just, thank you, thank you so much, I just wouldn't have a clue otherwise ya know?"

He chuckled and blushed as you turned to him, nearly whimpering with gratitude and relief.

"It's no problem whatsoever, though I should be the one thanking you."

You turned to him, ready to argue on why you were the most thankful, when Sans popped up besides the laptop on the coffee table. "hey guys. whatcha looking at?"

"Oh, just a house for you guys. Wanna see?"

Sans straightened up, looking towards the computer with interest. "a house, eh? huh..." He pointed towards one of the pictures, choosing a plain blue model. "this one seems _spine_ to me, heh."

You all jumped, startled, when Blue's voice suddenly rang out.

"NOOOOO!" Within seconds, he clambered his way onto the table. "I SAID NO MORE PUNS!"

"aww, but-"

"Well, I thought it was rather _humerous_ Blue, wouldn't you agree?" Dadster interrupted with a sly grin. Sans whipped around to look at Dadster with wide, shimmering eyes, his smile hitching up further.

"NOOO!" Blue cried out, dropping to his knees. "NOT ANOTHER ONE! HUMAN! PLEASE TELL ME YOU HAVE REMAINED SANE, UNLIKE EVERYBODY ELSE!"

You giggled at his theatrics and decided to distract him with the houses. Tilting the laptop towards him, you asked, "Sure Blue, but what do you think about getting one of these?"

He peeked up from where he cowered dramatically, and quickly overcame his dread and rushed over to press his hands against the screen eagerly. "WE'RE GETTING A HOUSE?! WOWZA! LET'S GET THIS ONE!"

He pointed to one, and you immediately looked away and blinked rapidly before you could sort of look back again. Holy fuck were those a lot of eye-bleeding colors. You couldn't imagine such a thing in your house, you could hardly glance at it!

Sharing a look with Dadster, you could see he thought the same. "Uhh..."

Blue turned to you with stars in his eyes, and suddenly you couldn't say 'no'.

"Uh, w-well, we still haven't asked Red yet, we should get everyone in on this since you three will be sharing it! Yeah, haha..."

Before you could call for him, he walked into the living room to glare at you all.

"why're you all being so fucking loud?" he grumbled, then stopped to take in the scene. "what're you all doing anyways?"

"Looking at doll houses for you three," you replied.

"oh shit, really?" Red asked, and teleported onto the tabletop. He went over to the laptop and began scrolling through the selection until he landed on one in particular. "heh, nice."

"Red, no," you said, staring at his choice.

"aww, why not? wha's wrong with it?"

"Everything..." you, along with everyone else, said in unison.

"Red," Dadster said. "...that's _bloody_ horrifying."

Blue looked ready to cry, and you weren't sure if it was because of the house, or because of the pun.

"alrighty then, it's settled," Sans spoke up. "we pick mine."

"fuck no."

"NO, AND LANGUAGE RED! AND I STILL THINK WE SHOULD CHOOSE THIS ONE, I MEAN JUST LOOK AT IT!"

Red grimaced. "i am, and that's why i'll burn it if it shows up here."

"YOU WOULDN'T DARE!"

"hell yeah i would."

"YOU WOUL-"

Dadster stepped in, hands raised peacefully. "Alright boys, enough arguing. We'll look through all the options, weed some of the choices out, and then we'll all vote on which one we all can agre-"

"Oh hey, look. There's a customization option."

Dead.

Silence.

Dadster slowly turned to look at you, horror etched in his features.

You began to sweat.

Chaos, pure chaos as the three Bitties launched themselves at your laptop.

"we're getting this color-"

"AND THESE WINDOWS-"

"don't forget the dragon skulls-"

"NO DRAGON SKULLS!"

"why the fuck not?! at least keep the blood splatters-"

"no blood, it's gonna be blue remember-"

Quietly, you scooped Dadster up into your arms and flopped back against the couch.

"If I'm going down you're going down with me," you croaked out.

Dadster looked between you and the boys, chuckling warmly after a moment.

"I do believe that I'm okay with that."

He sunk further into you, and the two of you watched the three battle over your laptop, observing the fascinating creation of what you would later secretly dub as the 'House of Hellish Horrors'.


	6. A Soul-Feeling (Part 1)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You find yourself with a sudden small inheritance from some great uncle you never really knew, and find yourself considering the cool, expensive Bitties that seem to have everyone hooked. Yet as you visit the nearest shop, you end up bypassing all the exotic ones, and instead head for the common rescues in the back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> alternate title 'the author got a tad carried away haha 5k words oh wow'
> 
> This prompt was given by MAPMonstersArePerceptions
> 
> ((btw don't read the blurb below if you don't want spoilers, it's pretty detailed))
> 
> "You never really thought much about the bitty craze. Bitties were bitties. They were intelligent, cute beings who thrived in the households of humans. When a financial change (ie distant relative died and left fortune) allows you to indulge in visiting a "bitty adoption center", you think that maybe you'll get one of the more exotic types. Too bad your soul keeps dragging your feet to the back where the rescues are kept - specifically a cage with a common (sans, blue, etc author's choice). The poor thing has scars from poorly healed bones and seems terrified. As you slowly win his trust, you learn that human media never asked bitties what they want out of life. As your bond grows with your new roommate, your heart yearns to reunite him with his brothers and sisters. You must find them and show them a home without fear."
> 
> Thanks for the prompt! I hope it turned out well ^^

The sun was bright and warm, the breeze sweet and pleasant, and the dew on the grass seemed to sparkle in the morning light. For all that it appeared to be, it should have been a good day. You should have been enjoying this great weather, stretching out lazily as you woke up, having a nice breakfast, then getting ready for whatever your plans would have been today had things been different. It should have been like any other day.

Instead, you were left with a way too convoluted mishmash of feelings that clashed with the calm and quiet air.

Your fingers clutched as a loose stack of papers as you stared almost blankly at them.

It was clinical, short, and direct. A distant relative of yours had died. A Great Uncle of yours, or something along those lines. You read the name, only remembering vague, fuzzy memories from the deepest depths of your childhood that had involved him. They were just as vaguely and fuzzily pleasant.

Your cleared your head and turned back to the forms. It told of him, what he had owned, the details of his death, and how it all involved you.

Right after you read the date when the funeral would be taking place, it opened the case of how his estate was being worked out. More specifically, what was left to you.

Roughly, you were granted 20,000 dollars from the will while everything else would be sorted out among the family.

You shook your head and thumbed numbly through the papers, and found something that felt rough under your fingers and had neat handwriting. You read it.

_Dear _ _ _ _ _ ,_

_I know you may not remember me by the time you read this, but I saw you plenty as a child. You were the sweetest little thing, always bringing a little bit of light with you when the family came together. Even though it's been quite a few years, I haven't forgot any of it, and want to leave you a small sum to do with as you wish. For all the happy memories you gave me._

_Love, your great uncle, Bernard Wenchik_

You took in a slow breath and sat down on your couch, flipping back to the first paper as you tried to organize your thoughts and feelings.

On one hand, you suddenly have an extra twenty thousand dollars. You itched to think of it further, joy swelling up inside you at the unexpected gain. Yet that seemed to be your main problem. You didn't just get this money from nothing. Someone died first, before you got it, and that bothered you. Was it okay to have it? You hardly even remembered the guy...

You sighed and placed the papers down on the coffee table, rubbing your temples as you rested your weight on your knees.

You just...were really not expecting this today.

Hopefully you'd have your emotions sorted through after the funeral.

\- - - - -

You had gone to the funeral, and it was...underwhelming, to say the least. You kind of hoped to be more sad than you had been, yet you hadn't been too upset overall by the event. At least then, you might have felt a little better with the money you inherited. You still wondered why he gave it to you, despite the letter's reasonings. Had the few bright memories you supposedly given him during your childhood really worth this gift?

Unknowing what to do next, you simply opted to leave the money in your account, and take out to clear your mind a bit.

The mild bustle of your town was soothing as you went around, visiting your favorite places. You went to the park, which had been very pleasant since the nice weather had persisted. It was also never a disappointment seeing the fluffy pooches people brought with them there. As you walked around, you stopped for some ice cream, licking from it languidly as you left to roam around more of the town.

Of all the shops and stores that you ended up passing by, only one caught your eye enough to make you pause.

_Bits-N-Pieces_

You snorted at the name as soon as you peered inside to see what they had. Bits- as in Bitties- were cooped up on the sides of the shop, separated with neat glass walls as they walked around, going about their daily routines. And the pieces, or rather everything that one needed to support a Bitty, lined the shelves that stood in the center. Or at least, that was your guess.

As you idled around outside, someone came out of the shop, a Bitty perched on his shoulder. You watched as he walked past, hearing them laughing about some topic or another and seeing the happy grins on their faces. And if that wasn't enough to push you in through the doors, than the sight of the tiny, badass looking skeleton donning a studded jacket was enough to seal the deal.

Fully enraptured, you excitedly walked inside. A cute little bell rung as the door opened, the sound fitting in right alongside all the others in the shop. Voices, loud and soft, rose up all over, and you turned to where you heard them most clearly.

You knew what Bitties were, ever since they had been announced to the public officially, but asides from seeing them from a distance, you had yet to see one so close up before. Until now, that is. An awed noise escaped you as you came nearer, looking with wide eyes at all the different types of tiny skeletons and elementals.

More of the skeletons with studded jackets were there, funnily enough (did they all look badass? so cool!), but they weren't the only type. Far from it, actually. Your eyes were drawn over to a more animalistic type. Tiny beings, skeletal or otherwise, that had a wolfish appearance to them. The skeletons in particular looked like tiny hell hounds, and seeing them made your heart leap in your chest. Their tiny, wagging bony tails were especially adorable.

After reaching in for a quick pat on one of their heads, you were drawn away once again by another type. These ones were half and half; part skeleton and part snake, and you 'oohed' over their colorful, almost translucent tails. They kind of reminded you of the sort of see-through fish, where you could see the bones through their forms. You heart was captured again as you reached in for another pet, running a finger along the cool, jelly-esk flesh. The one under your touch made a cute, inquiring sound as...they(?) reached up towards you with their small arms.

"Oh my gosh," you cooed, petting them more. They seemed to like it as they curled around your fingers.

"Hi there," a voice piped up, and you turned to see one of the store workers. "Are you having an easy time finding everything alright?"

"Oh uh, yeah, thanks," you replied, a tad sheepishly.

"Well that's good," he continued, "we also offer store tours for new customers. Are you familiar with Bitties at all?"

"Not really..." you admitted, casting a glance at the cutie snuggling your hand. You had stopped petting for a moment, and they seemed keen to make you start up again.

"That's expected, since Bitties are rather new and all. We give tours to newcomers to catch them up on everything we have to offer here at Bits-N-Pieces, would you be interested?"

You considered the offer, and despite how practiced and a little unnerving his unnatural cheer was, you accepted.

The tour started with a brief rundown on the snake cuties, seeing as how one had taken to you right away, but soon moved on to all the others. You sadly bid the little guy goodbye before moving on, and soon began learning more about Bitties in general, as well as all the types that they were sorted by.

As you two slowly made your way through the store, you found that there was another section at the back, occupied with even more Bitties that you hadn't initially noticed. It wasn't as fancy or anything as all the other sections; in fact it almost seemed hidden away from the rest of the store, obscured by dimmer lighting and shelving. You waited for the worker to lead you over to it, yet he led you right past it.

Curious, you asked, "What's over there?"

He stopped to see what you were pointing at. "Oh, that's where all the rescues are kept. They're not recommended for first time Bitty owners."

"Oh..." You cast a sympathetic glance back at where the rescues were as your guide urged you on with the rest of the tour. Even though you went back to looking at new and equally cool Bitties, your thoughts kept straying to the back of the store.

It almost felt like something was drawing you in, and by the time the tour ended and the employee wandered off, you found yourself immediately bypassing the exotic looking Bitties and going back to the rear of the store.

Hardly anyone else was near there, leaving you with an eerie feeling of emptiness and the vague thought that you weren't supposed to be there as you closed in on the cages. And they were cages, metal wires and all, unlike the pretty glass dividers separating the others up in the front. Your lips pulled into a thin frown as you pondered why.

You were pulled from these thoughts when you spotted a pair of lights in one of the cages. Two bright dots, that you soon saw were tiny eyes. They trailed your every movement as you slowly came closer, something inside of you drawn to the caged, scarred Bitty you saw. The same thing reeling you in also pushed you to greet the tiny skeleton.

"Hey little gu-"

No sooner had the first word passed your lips that the blue-clad Bitty yelped and scrambled back. You startled and jumped back, the yelp now replaced with growling as he stared you down from the confines of the cage.

"Oh geez, sorry about him." Another worker appeared, looking at the cage with a detached look of pity. "None of the guys back here have had the best of lives, 'specially him. Most of their owners-

You noticed the little guy flinch.

"-didn't turn out to be good people, or something else bad happened to 'em. If I were you, I'd check out the ones at the front. Easier to handle, 'n good around people, ecetera...mostly..."

"Oh," you murmured, looking back at the fearfully hostile Bitty. "Would...would it hurt to stay? And what type is he?"

The store worker chewed on her lip thoughtfully. "I guess not, so long as you keep quiet and don't scare them. And he's a Sansy, they're pretty common."

"Okay." You stood back as the worker moved forward to place some food into the cage containing the Sansy. His growls rose sharply, edged with wheezy whines whenever she moved to fast for his liking. Finally, she was done and moved onto the other cages, and you paced forward to see what they gave the Bitties to eat.

"Huhhh." You squinted at the...food. Honestly, you wouldn't have known it was food if you hadn't seen it placed in there. It kinda looked what kibble might look like if it was smashed into the ground. You pulled a face at it.

A tiny snort sounded, and you looked up to the Sansy, seeing that he was eyeing you, then the food with the same amount of distaste.

"Yeah, I hear ya little guy."

His growls picked up again, though softer this time. He eyed you again, but you only kept on staring at the pathetic slop in his cage that they called 'food'. Eventually, he looked back at it too, and a silence crept in.

"...Alright, this is making me sad. You wait here little guy."

The Sansy watched you walk away, his mood switching to dull curiosity as you left the store. You sounded like you were planning on coming back...though maybe all your words were just a means of escaping the situation. Figures. He settled back down after a while, wishing the rest of his day would pass quietly.

The bell to the shop rang a few times, but he paid it no mind. Footsteps grew louder, and he tried to ignore it until it was clear that they were nearing still. He instinctively went to glare at whoever chose to come to the back, where he was.

And he was shocked to see that you were back again, looking only a slight bit sheepish as you came closer. His guard flew up as you reached into your bag and pulled out a-  
"Here, don't tell anyone. I have no idea if this is, like, illegal. Against store rules at least, haha."

You slid a chocolate chip cookie in through the bars and shot him a silly wink.

"I have no idea what you like to eat but...can't go wrong with chocolate chip, yeah?"

He only stared at you silently, to the point that things got awkward again. Still, you were determined to keep up your smile as you bid your goodbyes.

"And, hey, maybe I'll see you again? I think I like this store, 'sides from the food options, hahah."

He didn't say anything, only watched silently as you left the store for good. You felt his little white eyes trailing you step for step, and you tried not to let the unnerved shivers override the good feeling that seemed to glow each time your mind wandered over to the strange little guy.

After you went, the Sansy spared a suspicious glance at the admittedly innocent looking treat. He tore his gaze away and ignored it, practically shunning it while the chocolaty scent tortured his stomach.

He didn't dare touch it. Who knew what you might have put in it.

\- - - - -

When you woke up the next morning, your thoughts drifted back to last night, after you had gotten back home after your impromptu visit to Bits-N-Pieces.

You had been munching from the bag of cookies you got, wondering if your small gift had made the little guy any happier when the idea hit you, and the gears in your head began to turn.

You just got money. Not a lot, admittedly, and you'd rather keep most of it in the bank for saving, but would it really hurt to splurge a little? You had thought about it before, right when the Bitties were first announced, yet you hadn't been able to afford it back then. Yet now you could.

You were very stuck on the little one in the back. The Sansy, you recalled being told. You really shouldn't do anything until you're more informed, but something inside you sung with joy at the thought of bringing the Bitty back home with you. You tossed the idea around a tad, then decided to spent the rest of the night researching as soon as you arrived on your doorstep.

The more you read, the more giddy you got. Everything about these companions just seemed so perfect for someone like yourself, especially the description of the Sansies.

Though, you had to wonder how different this one would be considering his history, and researched more on the topic of how to handle abused Bitties. Or, at least you tried to. Surprisingly, there wasn't much to be found, which dampened your spirits. How could there be so little on the subject?

With a huffy sigh, you had written out a list of things you thought would be helpful, if you went through with the adoption. Things like _patience, individual space/bitty house, no loud noises, clear communication_ , and more were scrawled on a piece of paper. It may not be perfect, but it was something.

You brought yourself back to the present and got ready for the day. Thankfully, it was the weekend, so you had no other plans other than to visit the center again.

Which you did, taking a walk and arriving back at the front doors roughly twenty minutes later. The sweet ring of the bell sung as it did before, and you went in, heading for the back.

"Oh, you're back."

You saw the same worker from before, the one who fed the Bitties. She gave you a nod as you passed on by.

"He didn't eat your gift, ya know."

You froze, a guilty smile starting to form.

"...Sansies tend to prefer ketchup instead." She looked you over and left quietly.

You blinked. "...Oh, ah, thanks!" you said, hoping she heard before going to visit the little guy again.

Just like before, the first you noticed were his piercing eyelights glaring at you. All you did in return was give him a sweet smile, still feeling that weirdly happy buzz inside.

"Hey," you greeted him softly.

He said nothing.

You wracked your brain for something to speak of, then remembered something from your research. "So, I heard some Bitties like jokes, how about you?"

Nothing, again.

"Well, how about this one..." You paused, fighting back a stupid grin. "Okay, so, this skeleton tried telling his friend something, but was accused of lying, yeah? So he said 'You gotta believe me, I'm pa-telling the truth!'"

You looked at the Sansy hopefully, but only found that he turned himself away from you and pulled his hood up over his head. It was a little disheartening, but you were determined to keep going.

"Alrighy, so these two skeletons were in a math class, and one turned to the other and asked him for help on finding something to do with circles. When asked, the other replied 'Of course I know how to find the radius, it's right here!" and held up his arm!"

"...h-heh..."

Your grin widened as you heard the muffled laugh and the faint shake of the tiny skeleton's shoulders. With renewed eagerness you plowed ahead to the next joke.

"Alright alright, so someone started telling all these skeleton jokes," you snickered, feeling a tad meta, "they were all very humerous."

"...h..heh..eheheheheh," the Sansy chuckled deeply, unable to hold back. You watched, pleased, as he trembled under the weight of his own laughter. Success!

You kept telling him silly skeleton puns and jokes, each one drawing a fresh wave of laughter from the tiny skeleton, all the way up until you left the store. As you left, you nearly leapt with joy, feeling the distance between you shorten just a bit more.

\- - - - -

"I brought these ketchup packets today."

That made hwhyim look at you with a mix of hope and distrust.

"One of the workers recommended it, so blame her if you don't really like these, haha." Taking out the red packets, you slid a couple in through the bars (very sneakily, like a ninja, you thought).

For a moment, he glanced between you and the snack a few times, before shifting over slowly and picking one up. He easily tore it open and, with slight hesitancy, began sucking out the red paste, continuing to give you the evil eye until the flavor hit him.

"hmmmm," he hummed and almost closed his eyes, continuing to eat from the packet. He squeezed out every last drop before moving on to the next.

You smiled at this, though your thoughts began to wander. Would it be too soon to ask?

"Hey..."

He paused and looked your way, and your nerves started to quiver.

"So...this store, do you ever plan to leave? With...someone...maybe?"

Slowly, he let the packet slip from his fingers as he stood up, and you felt dread creep up on you as he backed up to the end of the cage, far away from you.

His glare returned. " _why_?"

"U-Uh..." you stuttered, feeling pressured under his gaze.

"what do you want? why do you keep coming back?" His words turned harsher as he went on, until he was near growling at you.

"W-Well, uh, I," you froze under his stare. "I-I don't really know..."

His eye twitched. "bullshit, you don't know."

"I-I don't! I just..." you trailed off, thinking back to the first day when you let yourself be pulled to the back area, all due to some internal feeling, some urge you didn't recognize.

"I saw you here and just...heard about you not having the best life-" He scoffed a little at that, "-and just thought, 'maybe there's something I could do to help?' Do you know what I mean?"

He seemed ready to fire something back, but stopped. You watched as he settled into some kind of thoughtful silence.

"...yeah, i do. never heard that from a human though."

"Oh, well," You relaxed slightly, trying not to shuffle around nervously, "always gotta be a first for everything, yeah?" Your voice was hopeful.

"...i guess..."

Some quiet passed, then you spoke. "Well, you don't have to say yes, or decide right now, or anything." You looked at the time on your phone, and seeing how late it got, bid him farewell for the day. "See you tomorrow?"

"......sure."

You sighed in relief. "Okay, yeah! See you tomorrow!"

He tried not to, but eventually chuckled at your enthusiasm right as you turned to leave.

\- - - - -

The next day, you didn't bring up the topic of adoption, and for that he seemed grateful. Instead, something else happened.

"You're pretty good at this, aren't you?"

You both turned to see the same worker you've seen the past few times.

She didn't wait for your reply as she continued. "Ever think about spending time with him outside of the cage? I got the keys."

You paled, mind flitting through many things. "Is that...allowed?"

She shrugged. "Just me here right now."

You held back from openly gaping, and sought out the Sansy's opinion instead. He looked just as shocked as you, standing stock still and silently in the cage. Slowly, he turned to peer up at you, and you'd be lying if you said it wasn't a little eerie, how he stared at you then.

An eternity passed, then another, and when you were about to burst from holding your breath for so long, you finally spotted movement. A single nod.

You jolted out of your shock and turned back to the worker. "I think we're up for that, yeah."

She quietly pulled out the keys and quickly made work of the lock, then left you to go about the rest by yourself. The tension was enough to steal you of your normally chill attitude as you opened the cage door, the Sansy watching your movements much as he had on the first day.

Suddenly, the scars littering his skull and visible limbs were so obvious; the automatic fear and distrust in his eyes so bright.

"I-Is i okay if, uh-" You swallowed. "-if I pick you up?"

"no," he said, and you felt a wave of rejection, until he vanished in a puff of light, only to reappear on your shoulder. You struggled not to jump or yelp.

"this is fine, though," he continued, almost shyly.

"Oh, okay! So, uhh..." Your mind felt blank as you tried to find the next step after this.

"...it's still early, yeah?"

"Yeah? It is," you responded, taken from your thoughts by the question.

"hmm." He closed his eyes in thought for a second before seeming to realize what he was doing, and promptly opened them again with slight urgency. He scanned the area before relaxing again, now back on track.

"umm, how about we go to the front, where all the window are. 's been a while since i've really seen the outside..."

Despite the sadness in that statement, you smiled, really liking that plan. "Yeah! I bet it's still really nice and colorful!"

You quickly trotted over to said windows and sat down on the low ledges. The Sansy leaned out and peered up at the sky, eyes wider than you've ever seen them.

"woah...you were right, so colorful..."

You looked up with him, marveling at the soft twirls of pink and orange as the sun began to trail across the sky.

"Yeah, so pretty..."

"...yeah..."

"Yeah."

"heheh."

The two of you saw it fit to keep watching the morning sky for the rest of your visit.

\- - - - -

"umm..."

"Yeah?" you asked.

A few days had passed, and once again you two were perched by the windows, observing nature and anyone passing by. It had become routine, for you to arrive and sit down at this spot with the Sansy sat on you shoulder. He had yet to let you pick him up, but that was fine. Even if he never wanted it, you were perfectly content with just this much.

Though something about today seemed different. A shifted atmosphere, a new sort of tension between you two, a quietness that promised to be broken.

He went silent, and you let the now familiar eternities pass before he chose to address what he had on his mind.

"...remember that day when you asked me, uh, about being adopted?"

You stilled, breath caught in your throat.

"...Yeah?"

Now the eternity was killing you. You waited, knowing, or at least hoping for what it felt like he was going to propose.

"i've been thinking about it..."

"Y-Yeah?"

God damn this suspense.

"and, uh, i've changed my mind since then. i wouldn't mind living with ya."

"Oh god finally," you breathed out, practically suffocated as you slumped back against the glass. The Sansy shot you an amused glance as you gathered yourself back together.

"Yes, yes I'd love that!" You smiled, but then dropped it. "Ah frick, but I don't have any supplies yet...or even know your name!"

The Sansy chuckled, though it didn't sound too happy. "i don't have a name."

You couldn't help but gasp. "No name?! Well, guess that's up to me now. Uh, if you want I mean."

He looked up at you. "you'll give me a name?"

You grinned. "Sure!"

He waited as you sat still, thinking, before you gasped again. Yet you didn't say anything.

"er, well?"

Your grin turned devious. "It's a surprise! I'll tell you when we get home...and after we get all the stuff we'll need."

"aw, come o- wait, home? we're going now?"

You saw the smile he was fighting against and stood up. "Yeah! Why not?"

"huh...neat."

As you went around the store, basket now in hand as you quickly began filling it up, your heart was racing a mile a minute. It was happening! Really, truly happening!

When you had everything you needed, you went over to one of the counters, where none other than the female worker that you keep seeing is waiting.

"Hey," she greeted, "I see you've made friends?"

"Yep!" you chirped, making both the Sansy and worker laugh.

"I hope you have enough money prepared? Some don't always realize just how pricey these guys can get."

The Sansy on your shoulder stiffened, and you gave him a concerned, inquisitive look, hand slightly raised. After a second, he nodded, and you brought your fingers up and ran them soothingly over his skull.

"Yeah, I do," you replied, pulling back your hand to retrieve your bank card.

"That's good." She makes quick work of going through the items and bagging them. "Lemme go and grab the papers then."

As she goes out to some reserved room of the store to grab the adoption papers, you saw the Sansy looking at you, and you two exchanged small smiles after the brief tension passed.

"You okay?" you asked, a tad worried.

"'m fine," he said. A moment passed, then, "so, we're really doing this, huh?"

"Yeah!" you yip, like a happy pup. "Though, are you really sure...?"

"heh," He closed his eyes and leaned against your neck. "i'm sure."

You leaned back against the counter, seeing the worker start to return out of the corner of your eye. "I can't wait."

Now back, she placed the forms out before you and gave you a pen, showing you where to sign and what you had to fill out. There were a few Bitty specific sections, some that were unfamiliar to you, but thankfully she was more than helpful when you filled those out as well.

There was one form indicating the name of the Sansy, and you giggled mischievously and made sure to keep it covered as you filled wrote it in, seeing the sly, peeking looks the Bitty tried to get of it in the moment.

"No, it's a surprise for later~!" you whispered, and the worker gave you two an amused glance.

When it was done, you handed them back to you, but she gave you a couple back. "These are your own copies and whatnot," she explained, and you gratefully took them and placed them in your bag.

"So it's official now, huh?" you asked, a bit giddy.

"Haha, sure is," the worker confirmed.

The excitement building, you sung all the bags onto your arms, feeling the call of your home.

"Thank you!" you said to the employee, and they nodded before you took off, out the store and onto the sidewalk. Your new roommate (did you mention that you couldn't wait to get him home?) cast a curious, delighted look around at all there was to see. As you sped on by, you forced yourself to slow down, to let him look longer at everything outside.

"everything's so peaceful" he murmured, looking around at all the Spring beauty. You agreed, incapable of ignoring the lush grass and blue skies now that you were looking at them.

"hey." He turned to you, and you stopped walking as a oh-so-familiar quiet crept in to make the time crawl past.

"Yes?" you whispered, when the quiet persisted.

He just looked at you, a silent conflict in his eyes, mouth twitching, as though he was trying to speak but unable to find the words he needed. Eventually, he relaxed and said, "let's go home."

A soft breeze swept through as you hummed, pushing you back into motion as you resumed walking.

A few minutes later, and you were back at your house, rising the couple of steps onto the porch and fiddling with the lock until you managed to open it, and pushed the door open. You flicked the switches, letting light flood inside and reveal the cozy interior as you both stepped through.

"Welcome home Sunny!"

His laughter lit up the air, and every ounce of his guard dropped as he momentarily snuggled into your neck.

"i love it."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, feel free to point out any typoes, weird spacing, etc  
> Also what do you guys think of their bonding? Do you think it happened a little too fast? Cause I'm not sure haha, would love to hear any criticisms about it for whenever I write something like this again ;3;  
> Also yep, this isn't the end of this one. I'm planning for at least one more part to wrap up the rest of the prompt.


	7. A Soul-Feeling (Part 2)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So...this isn't the end of this prompt ^^' I thought that all the content in this chapter would be shorter. As I was writing, I was like, "This'll probably be 1k words, maaaybe 2k words, then we'll get on to the ending and wrap it all up!"  
> Not. Even. Close.  
> So there'll be one more part to this XD  
> Also, more stuff about this work below.

There weren't too many instances in your life where you could say this with full confidence, but adopting Sunny had been one of the best decisions of your life.

Two solid months had passed since you first brought him home. Every day thereafter was filled to the brim with little skeleton grins, some small and sweet, others wide and devious as he told a bad joke or pulled off a rather ingenious prank. You still remember how he had rigged the whipped cream can to spurt out cream when you opened the fridge. That was one of your favorites, and you still wondered how he had managed to set it up.

Other days weren't so grand. Something would happen that would stress one of you out, leaving you frustrated, or teary eyed, or just downright down in the dumps. Sometimes you didn't see eye to eye on things, but they never lasted forever. It would end up being resolved, usually with you two making up if it was a fight, then giving in to the sweet allure of junk food while the two of you crashed on the couch and binged on netflix. As you got to know each other better, these occurred less often, leaving more time for the brighter days.

You never would have thought that, by now, you couldn't imagine your life without the little punny guy. The time passed so quickly, and with anyone else, you would probably only be casual friends with them. Maybe there was something different about it this time. Maybe Bitties were easier to befriend, maybe living with someone and having more time to bond with them sped it up so much, or maybe you two connected in a way that you simply couldn't put into words. Whatever it was, though, didn't matter. You two were family now. He was your Bitty, and you were his Human.

Which is why you got so, so worried when Sunny suddenly started having problems.

Sleeping problems, to be more precise. You had started to notice after he stopped sharing your bed with you and began spending his nights in the large, functional doll house you got for him. In any other instance, this wouldn't bother you, but then you found out why he began sleeping there instead of with you.

During some nights, you would awaken to his screams and wails that would set your hairs on end. He would yell out for other Bitties in a pained voice, and by the time you fell out of bed and rushed to the living room, where the house was, he would be awake and insist that he didn't remember having any nightmares.

The other instances were harder for you to notice, but on the now rare occasion where you two passed out in the living room after having a movie marathon or some other event, you would wake up to his soft thrashing and twitching, to the mutterings that slipped out from his teeth, and eventually to him waking up in a cold sweat. He would be terribly frightened afterwards, clearly remembering the nightmare this time, and suffering for it as you tried your best to sooth him without making it any worse. You had learned your mistake after the first time you tried to take him into your hands after such a nightmare. Since then, you spoke to him in a calm and quiet voice, coaching him through his panicked state until he was okay again.

Three weeks passed. The nightmares only got worse and more frequent, and finally, your concern for Sunny made you speak up about it, despite how clear it was that he didn't like to talk about his problems.

"I just wish you'd talk to me about this," you said, looking at the Sansy that was sat on the top of the living room couch.

He sighed and turned his gaze away. "i know, but it doesn't matter, you don't need'ta worry about me."

"Yes I do!" you insisted, back straightening as you tried to look him in the eye. "You're my friend- hell, you're my _family_ , of course I'm gonna worry about you!"

"no, you don't," he pushed back, "it's just some bad dreams, everyone gets 'um."

You scoffed. "Bad dreams? Sunny, those are nightmares and-and night terrors!" you shot back, voice raised. "They've been happening for weeks! And I see how it's started to affect you, and I-I-...what if it keeps happening? Gets worse?" Your voice dipped back down, now a whisper. "You can always talk to me about anything, though if you don't want to, than maybe we could do something else, or find someone who knows what they're doing," you gave a weak chuckle as a feeling of uselessness washed over you. Your eyes shifted to his hidden arms, knowing how scratched and busted up they had gotten due to his nightly thrashings, and looked away again as more sadness threatened to take over.

"i-i..." Sunny stuttered and weakly said your name, seeming at a loss as to how to respond. He shifted uncomfortably and fiddled with his hands, indecisive about whether he wanted them in his pockets or in his lap. "it has...a lot to do with where i came from, before i got to the center." He took in a deep, steady breath. "and a lot to do with the people i met there, other bitties i mean. i've never stopped thinking about it since the center found me."

You held your breath as he spoke. This was...much more than you imagined, yet at the same time you didn't expect anything less.

"Where you came from?" you asked, trying not to look at his visible scars. You had assumed he had been abused by some horrible past caretaker, but something about the way he worded it made you rethink it.

He nodded solemnly. "it's a bit of a long story, and a lot to take in, so, uh, get comfy i guess."

You leaned back, then looked at him and opened your arms invitingly. Sunny hesitated, then scooched closer and let you bring him in for a hug before he talked.

"before i got to the center, i was somewhere else..."

That somewhere else, he told you, had been a Bitty fighting rink.

He had only been adopted one other time, he told you. Sunny and his brother (a papy Bitty, he clarified, and hearing that he had a sibling made the rest of his tale more heartbreaking for you) had been picked up by a man. Neither had suspected anything, and had been happy that they had managed to be adopted together.

"you should'a seen how big his smile was," Sunny had said. "heh, biggest it would ever be..."

They started realizing something was wrong when the man had swapped their cardboard carrier for a metal one, and had driven them out to an old, run down barn. They were greeted by the sounds of bones crunching, of screams echoing off the walls, of the excited yells and shouting of those watching, and by the smell and sight of Dust hanging heavy in the air.

"he didn't even bother with tryin'a train us, just dumped us into the first open fight an' bet his money on us."

It was there that he and Papy had met their fighter. A Boss, one that towered over them both and had at least four major scars, two missing teeth, and one missing finger. They were whipped back and forth by him, and Sunny pointed out three of his scars, telling you that he got them from the Boss, all in that one fight.

"i thought we were, ya know, gonna bite the dust, h-heh, but then..."

The Boss had stopped, sparing them despite his owner spitting curses at him.

"we actually met him later on, coupl'a days later, when we were all placed in the back and waiting for our times. told us how he only killed the ones who were starting to enjoy it all. we all watched out for each other after that. best we could, anyways."

From there, his little group slowly expanded. A week of fighting had passed before they all met the next Bitty to join them.

"he was such a small thing when we met him. still is, actually, heh." Sunny paused to look out the window, eyeing the free sky and taking in a deep breath. "first met him when he was brought in for, eh...well, it would be simplest to say he wasn't a fighting bitty. those human fucks used cherry for-" He clenched his teeth, trying and failing to calm down. "-as a prize for the winners. always took him out when things started getting dull with the humans."

You went stock-still, almost interrupting him in your shock. Everything he had told you so far hadn't prepared you for this. Sunny glanced up at you, some of the anger leaving his eyes.

"heh, sorry. told you this was a lotta take in...i could stop-"

"No! No, it's fine. Geez, this has to be worse for you anyways, if you can tell me then I can handle listening, okay?" You tightened your hug for just a moment to send the message across, and he nodded.

"yeah, okay...boss was the first'a 'meet' him. he became a bit of'a regular after that, guess the audience liked it."  
Sunny went vague about some of the things concerning the cherry, of which you were both relieved and worried about. He quickly hurried on to tell you the final member of their impromptu group. A G, he had clarified.

"wasn't so much of a great fighter as he was a good observer. wouldn't be surprised if he managed to escape after we were separated...i hope so, anyways. the rink didn't see elementals all that often, so he got paired up with cherry a lot. it wasn't long before he was a part'a the gang."

He told you of how level-headed the G had been, how nice it was to see a genuine relationship blossom between him and the cherry, and how he had never stopped looking for a way out, always keeping a keen eye open for anything of use. He had never found anyway out, however.

"S-So, how did you get out?" you finally piped up, voice a whisper.

"me 'n papy got to be pretty good fighters," he said, but there was nothing proud about the way he said it. "our human noticed, and so did others too. he ended up selling me to someone else...it, uh, was hard being away from the others. i stopped fighting so good, and my owner got pissed and tossed me when he couldn't get a refund."

"Shit." The curse slipped out, but at least it got a chuckle out of Sunny.

"heh, yeah," he agreed. "that's about it. after that i was found by the center, then i was found by you."

His frown gave in to a slight smile as he leaned further back into you, and you returned it with weepy eyes.

"ah shit, sorry, i knew this was a bit too much to tell." He climbed up your shirt and feebly reached up with his short arms to try and dry your tears. He made it just as you broke out into whimpering giggles.

"No, no, I'm...I'm just so damn happy you're out of there now."

"'n i'm glad i'm here now."

Hearing that, you looked at him with adoring eyes. He coughed meekly under your stare and slid back down to your arms.

"Me too," you said back. "Me too."

\- - - - -

You stayed by Sunny's side for the rest of the day after that. After sharing such an emotion part of his history with you, you were simply waiting for the moment when it all caught up with him, surprised it hadn't happened sooner. Sure, he had to stop a few times, and he had gotten teary eyed as well, but nothing as big as you were expecting.

It finally happened in the middle of the night as he was stricken with one of his worst nightmares, and you put everything you had into comforting him when he woke up.

The whole next day was spent with you spoiling the shit out of him. Making him his favorite breakfast, giving him little cuddles and kisses whenever he let you pull him in for one, and staying by his side whenever a bout of sadness wreaked him over. It had been a heavy day, but you helped him get through it the best you could.

\- - - - -

"I just want to see if there's anything specific to Bitties that will help with your nightmares," you explained, and not for the first time, on why you were heading to the center as your grumpy Sansy pitched a fit.

"hmph," he huffed, arms crossed as he gave you the stink eye. You rolled your eyes back and kept walking.

"You don't need to come with me, you know? If you want, I could drop you off back home real quick..."

Sunny grumbled out a 'no', and you tried not to giggle at his stubbornness. He seemed to want to stick by your side whenever you ventured outside your home, and while he never told you why he did it, your most recent knowledge about him led you to think that he was being protective. Even today, when you were heading back to the center, the one place that you knew that Sunny had seen enough of.

"I'll try to make it a quick trip, okay?" you offered.

"okay," he mumbled, loosening his tensed frame. You nuzzled your cheek against him, smiling when he tried to hide the grin that broke through after.

The center appeared when you rounded the counter, and a few steps later the door was in front of you. You reached out and pushed it open.

"Give me my mate back!"

You both jolted when a raspy voice shouted out. Sunny tensed immediately, and a surge of magic was felt by your ear right as you got the sense to glance around the store. From the front, everything looked ordinary, yet all was silent save for the raging voice and the familiar drone of the employee.

"You need to calm down," the familiar worker's voice spoke, "you'll be able to see him after-"

"No, I will see him now!" the new voice rose up again, and you slowly crept closer, only to startle when a flash of fire sputtered to life at the heels of the worker.  
She stamped them out, less than impressed, despite her singed shoes.

"You will wait," she drawled heavily, a twitch in her eyes. You eventually mustered up the nerve to sneak close enough to see the whole deal, and what you saw was a royally pissed grillbitty facing off against the ever apathetic employee.

Before you could utter the confused "uhh" that was desperate to escape your mouth, the weight of Sunny vanished from your shoulder. He quickly reappeared on the tile floor, his eyes pulled wide open in shock and disbelief.

"g?!"

The G Bitty whipped his head around furiously, yet as soon as their eyes met his wildly spewing flames turned to a surprised flickering.

"...Sansy?" he asked. His raged tone swapped out for melancholy as he took an almost shy step towards Sunny. He took another step, and another, before he was standing in front of each other. "I-It's amazing to see that you're, well, alive!" His voice went from joyous to somber within the next heartbeat. "But, Sansy, they-they have him, they took my love from me..."

You shuffled, feeling very awkward and lost. "Uhh, Sunny...?"

The G turned to you sharply. "You stay back-"

"woah, hey," Sunny went and placed himself between you two, "it's cool, they're, uh, they're my human, g."

G's faced the Sansy with a bewildered look, and was about to say something before a deliberate cough sounded out.

"Excuse me," the worker finally spoke up, "but I still need the G to either wait calmly, or to leave."

"I am not leaving, and I am not waiting," the G rebuked immediately, making the worker sigh heavily.

"I hate to interrupt," you said, looking back to the worker, "but what's happening?"

She shifted and chewed on her lip. "Someone found an injured Bitty on the streets 'n brought him here. Next thing I know, this little pissant busts in and demands to see him."  
The G bristled at the comment, and you hurried to talk before he could do anything. "Um, so there's really no way to just let him back there?"

"No, only one's allowed in the back are people looking to treat their Bitties and the bits they bring with them."

You perked up at this. "W-Well, what if I was here for something like that? Can't he come back with us?" You could practically feel the heavy gaze of the G by the time you finished.

She raised a skeptical brow at you. "Really? And what would that be?"

Within moments, you had her filled in on what has been happening at home.

"Hmm." She closed her eyes briefly. "You know what? If it works, it works. C'mon." She waved a hand, gesturing that you follow as she went through a nearby door.

You nearly slumped with relief, and turned to Sunny and G. The former of which had given you a proud look, and the latter appearing bewildered, yet appreciative.

"Thank you," he said, then walked to the door as you brought Sunny back to your shoulder. All three of you entered the back room, where G nearly ran towards a metal table, where a someone new had just finished wrapping up the leg of a sniveling cherry.

And suddenly, it clicked.

"Wait, is this- are these the G and cherry you mentioned?!" You whisper-yelled at Sunny, who chuckled at your revelation.

"yep, it's...been a while."

You turned back to see the two, who were happily reunited and hugging as the...doctor (vet?) was chastising them, to no avail.

"You were supposed to keep him out, Reece," the doc-vet huffed, and you hurried over and smiled somewhat guiltily.

"He's here with me, actually." Your smile wavered as he turned his spectacled gaze to you. His eyes hardened when you both noticed that Sunny had now joined them on the table, and were making an even bigger fuss.

"Sorry," you murmured, and he shook his head, exasperated.

"Well, at least he's patched up now," He turned his attention to the three on the table. "Be easy on him and I'll allow it...this time."

He began putting his tools away, leaving you and the three Bitties in relative peace. You went closer to the table, and the Cherry's pink eyes shot up to you. Before you knew it, tears began to spring up in his eye sockets. You sputtered and tried to tell him you meant no harm, but it only seemed to upset him further.

"hey, hey, it's okay cher, they're a real bonafide pal'a mine," Sunny joked, grinning reassuringly as G brought Cherry closer to himself. Their eyes met, and G, after a moment, quietly spoke.

"They do seem to be okay. They did help me in getting in here, and even then, I would never let anyone harm you again." He nuzzled his firey head with the cherry's, which seemed to do the trick, as the weeping had started to soften up. He slowly brought his pink eyes back up to yours.

"h...h-hello..." he whispered shyly, and in any other circumstance it would've been the cutest damn thing you've ever seen or heard. Now, though, it made your heart pang for the little one.

"Hi," you kept your voice soft, and sat down so that you weren't towering over them. Now that he wasn't bawling, you felt a little more capable of speaking to him. "I've heard that you're a friend of Sunny?"

He tilted his head, confused, until the sansy waved at him. He pointed to himself when he had the cherry's attention, and the little Bitty gasped.

"y-you have a n-n-name now?" His eyes sparkled when the other nodded, and he looked back to you with wide eyes.

"s-s-so y-you and san- uh, s-sunny live t-together?" he asked, forgetting your earlier question in his haste. "a-and you g-gave him a n-n-name, a-and a soft b-bed, and g-good food, and-and-" he cut himself off as you nodded. "wow..." he murmured, looking starry eyed. Your heart quivered after the whole thing, yet before anyone could say anything else, the doctor returned.

"So, Reece told me you were here for your sansy, yes?"

You nodded, and at his gesture, went on to tell him everything about why you initially came here. Outside of your line of sight, G and Cherry began making sure Sunny was fine as they learned about what's been plaguing him.

"Is there anything I could do for him?" you asked. "Anything, or something specific to Bitties?"

"Hmm...well, unfortunately there's not been a lot of research done into the psychology of Bitties, so there's not much outside of having the right type of home environment for sansies."

If he saw your surprise, he didn't react to it. Nothing...there was next to nothing done about the mental well being of Bitties? Just...fuck. Literally every other creature out there has been researched to help protect them, but not Bitties? What the hell?

You forced yourself to listen as he rattled off the things that helped Humans who had the same problems, in the hopes that they would work the same with Sunny. You thanked him quietly.

"You can have a few more minutes here until I need to get this cherry placed away to heal," he said, then left you again.

Back on the table, Cherry seemed frightened once more, and G's face darkened.

"Where are they taking him to?"

You jumped when he seemed to peer at you, but then realized that he was looking behind you. You turned and saw the worker- er, Reece, and wondered briefly if she had been there this whole time.

"Pro'lly a cage, or something like that."

The atmosphere became immensely heavy. The hairs on your neck stood on end when you saw the twisted looks on not only G, but on Sunny as well; two expressions that would make even Death shiver.

"Not a chance," the G growled, tightening his hold on Cherry as Sunny stood up, tensed. You shot Reece a pleading look.

"Isn't there something else we could do?"

She shook her head. "Nothing _I_ can do."

The weird emphasis had you puzzled. As you thought, little dings from the metal table told you that one of the Bitties had moved, and a moment later you felt a hurried tugging on your arm as Sunny came over to you.

"let's take them home!"

Your voice caught in your throat, and you peeked over at the couple, seeing them both peering at you with the same amount of surprise. Distrust and unease easily showed through, but beyond that, a shimmering of hope that had you feeling the same urge to help as you had felt way back then, when you had first met Sunny.

G seemed ready to speak, flames popping slightly, yet Cherry was quicker as he piped up.

"i-i-i...i think t-that w-would be n-n-nice."

You looked at his with something of an awed expression as G turned to him.

"Are you sure, love? We do not know them..." He faced Sunny then, a question passing from the grillbitty to the sansy.

"they're the greatest, promise," he answered, giving you a happy look as he leaned on your arm.

"t-t-then we c-can g-g-go! r-right?" Cherry looked between you and G with watery eyes as he pondered the possibility of being stuck in the center. You felt your resolve strengthen, and you nodded near-fiercely.

"Yes! Er, that's so long as it's fine with G."

Everyone went to look at the Bitty in question, who somehow only withered a little under the sudden attention. His fire swayed back and forth as he thought, and he let out a cackling breath as he came to a conclusion.

"Even though we do not know you," he started, looking you in the eyes, "and though we've known each other for only today...I trust Sunny's judgement of you. That, and you have proven to be very kind, so far. So yes, I agree to being adopted."

Cherry let out a happy little wail, and swept G in for a hug, then got up and waddled over to catch Sunny up into it as well.

"i-i-i always h-hoped s-s-something g-good like this w-would h-happen, and n-now it is!" he cried joyously, and you couldn't help but cradle your arms around the group when Cherry brought his glistening eyes up to yours. As this went on, you peeked out for Reece.

"Hey, we decided to- oh." Your mouth hung open as she slid the papers to you. Even she couldn't help but smirk at your bewildered face. "That obvious, huh?" She snorted and gave a nod.

Once everyone was untangled, you began filling out the papers. Cherry was happily reiterating everything that had just happened to G, when he gasped and raced back to you. He slowed when he arrived, suddenly shy and nervous.

"u-u-uh, s-since your a-adopting us, d-does that mean w-we get names?"

He looked to hopeful, and you quickly went to say, "Of course!" You hummed and tapped the pen to your chin as you tried to conjure up two names for the two newcomers to your family, and brightened when they came. However, Sunny held up a hand right as you were about to reveal them.

"we should wait 'til we get home," he said with a wink, "make it tradition, ya know?"

You gasped with delight. "Okay!" You picked up the pace, rushing so that you could get them home and give them their names. Papers done, you handed them back to Reece along with your card, and moments later she came back and gave you your copies back.

"There, it's official," she said, and that was your cue to turn to the three.

"Ready to go home?" you asked, offering your hands. G and Cherry looked at them a little skeptically, but as soon as Cherry showed his trust and accepted, then G did too.

The whole way home, G remained quiet, and Cherry kept guessing at what his name was, practically vibrating with the need to know. And, every now and them, you'd hear Sunny whisper to himself 'there here', or, 'i can't believe we found them'. You just barely caught the last one as you arrived home.

'maybe we can find the others...'

That whispered question tumbled in your mind as you pulled the door open and entered, and stuck as you welcomed the duo to your home.

When you gave them their names of 'Rose' and 'Hearth', Cherry sobbed and thanked you profusely, and G gave the other a warm, loving look. You almost started tearing up yourself.

It wasn't all sun shines and rainbows, though, not that you were expecting it. There were quite a few times where you moved just a tad too fast, or something was dropped and made a loud noise, that set the two off. You quickly learned that, while Cherry seemed to attach to you quickly, he was still easily frightened by a lot of the movements you did. More so than Sunny had been in the beginning. The poor little thing always seemed to beat himself up for it too, which was somehow worse.

And it was clear G was only here for Cherry's sake. He was polite, undoubtedly so, yet you saw him tracking your every motion, gaze sharp and studious. He never strayed from his other's side, and watched you like a hawk as you prepared lunch and dinner. Even then, he always inspected the food like there could be something dangerous in it, and from what Sunny told you before, you had a horrible inkling of why. It was clear he didn't trust you, and wouldn't for quite a while.

Maybe even never.

...You were fine with that.

Okay, well...maybe it did sadden you to think that G might never come around. You couldn't ignore what you felt, yet so long as he was healthy and safe, then that was good enough for you.

Later that night, the two retired to the Bitty sized house, and to your surprise Sunny opted to sleep with you for the first time in weeks.

"Don't you want to spend the night with your friends?"

"well, yes," he said, climbing up to the comfy blankets, "but those two probably want some time alone right now. and..."

You quirked a brow. "And?"

Sunny sat down on top of the comforters. "i wanted to talk to you too. i...i want to try to find them. find the others. i didn't think they'd still be so close by, but g and cherry were, so maybe...maybe the others are as well."

He looked up at you, worry turning his mouth downwards.

"Oh Sunny, can I pick you up?"

He went silent as he stood up and walked to you, letting your reaching hands pick him up.

"Sunny," you started, and felt him tense in your hands, "we will definitely look for them."

"oh thank god," he laughed and clutched at his jacket.

You giggled back. "Did you think I would say no?"

"...for a second. should'a known better." He hugged your thumb for a second, before you let him down and let him choose a spot to sleep on the pillows.

"It's okay, I would be worried too," you said, laying down and settling in. "We'll start looking around tomorrow, sound good?"

Sunny stretched out, a dopey smile on his face. "sounds great, g'night."

"Goodnight," you murmured sleepily, eyes sliding shut.

As you stumbled along the edge of wakefulness, your mind wandered to what you planned to do. Of finding two other Bitties that you didn't know, but were already starting to care for. Of helping Sunny fight off his nightmares, and of helping the two newcomers find a new home here.

And with the last slivers of your conscious, you saw in your mind all the other Bitties out there alone and suffering, and the urge to do something, anything, ran through you right as everything faded away in the darkness of sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> (I know the reader didn't find these two on their own merit, but next chapter will be all that, just in case anyone was wondering about that detail of the prompt)
> 
> Also, concerning this work as a whole, I'm not gonna be accepting any prompts anymore from now on. This may be temporary, or permanent, I'm not entirely sure yet, but for right now just know that I'm not taking anymore prompts at the moment. I will be finishing up the ones I have on hold right now, so don't worry about those.  
> As for the future of this work, I may occasionally update some stuff after that, or open the prompts up again, but right now I want to focus on other things and decided to make these changes. Sorry for everyone who wanted to request something!


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